Preparing Winter Onion Sets & Garlic for Planting in October

October is the official kickoff for next year’s earliest homegrown harvest—onions and garlic! Planting now gives these essentials a head start, letting roots settle before deep cold and shoots surge as soon as spring returns. Follow this step-by-step autumn prep to guarantee healthy bulbs and full baskets next year.

1. Choose the Right Varieties

• Onion Sets: Look for autumn/winter planting types (often labeled “overwintering” or “Japanese” onions), such as ‘Radar’, ‘Electric’, or ‘Senshyu’.
• Garlic:
  • Softneck types (‘Early Purple Wight’, ‘Marco’) are best for mild areas or storage.
  • Hardneck types (‘Carcassonne Wight’, ‘Red Duke’) handle colder spots and have rich flavor.

Always buy disease-free, certified bulbs—avoid using grocery store garlic or onions for planting.

2. Prepare the Planting Bed

• Full sun: Select an open, weed-free bed that stayed dry last winter.
• Soil: Well-drained, loose, not freshly manured. Fork through to a fine tilth.
• Add: A light dressing of general-purpose fertilizer, or a sprinkle of wood ash to boost potassium.
• Lime clay or very acidic soil to pH 6.5–7.0 if you’ve had issues with rot or stunted growth.

3. Spacing & Layout

• Mark rows about 20cm (8″) apart for garlic/onions.
• Space garlic cloves 10–15 cm (4–6″) apart; onion sets 8–10 cm (3–4″) apart.
• Plant at least 5 cm (2″) deep for protection from frost, birds, and early growth.

4. Planting Technique

• Garlic:
  • Split bulbs into individual cloves. Plant each with the pointed end up.
• Onion Sets:
  • Place upright, root base down, tip just below (or barely just at) soil surface.
• Gently firm soil over bulbs/sets.

5. Aftercare

• Water in if soil is dry.
• Label rows—markers help with early weeding and succession sowing next year!
• Netting: Protect from birds if they’re notorious for pulling out small sets or cloves.
• Weed regularly: Onions and garlic struggle against weed competition.
• Don’t feed or water too much in autumn—wait until shoot growth starts in spring.

Bonus Tips

• Mulch lightly with straw or leaf mold if frost and wind are a concern (remove in spring).
• Plant a few extra for “spring onions”—harvest the spares young for salads.

Wrapping Up

Planting garlic and onions in October is easy, rewarding, and sets up months of anticipation for crisp, tasty homegrown bulbs. Prep well, plant right, and enjoy the certainty that—whatever winter brings—next year’s crop is already in motion.