Where does the onion come from?

Onion (Allium cepa) is a vegetable belonging to the Amaryllidaceae family. Currently, onions are no longer found in the wild, but they are cultivated as a vegetable in almost all countries. It originated in Central Asia, where it has been cultivated for a very long time. The first mentions of onion cultivation and harvesting date back to around 5000 BCE (onion drawings found in excavations in Palestine). Additionally, onion motifs are present in Egyptian paintings and reliefs dating back to at least 3200 BCE, suggesting that it was consumed in large quantities. Onions were also regularly cultivated and consumed by ancient Romans.

Did you know that the correct botanical name for this vegetable is garlic onion? This is because it is a species belonging to the garlic genus. However, the name onion is mainly used. Other common names include garden onion, common onion, green onion, or bulb onion.

What does the onion look like?

Onions form a very shortened stem (called a heel). The inflorescences are carried upward on inflated peduncles, very similar to leaves. The peduncles above the onion pass through the so-called false stem, a tube created by rolled-up and shortened assimilative leaves. The edible part of the onion is the fleshy leaf sheaths (white, purple, yellow) forming the bulb, which is a storage organ. From the onion, green, round, and hollow assimilative leaves also emerge. These can be consumed as a substitute for chives. In the second year of cultivation (as it is a biennial plant), the onion develops flowering stems (peduncles). They reach a height of 90-190 cm and end with spherical umbels containing 50 to 1000 flowers. The fruit is capsules usually containing 6 three-sided, black, wrinkled seeds. There are typically 250 to 370 seeds per gram. Onions have a fasciculate root system reaching 30-40 cm.

In the "Cultivation Plans" section, you will find a year-round onion cultivation plan, where we have included all activities related to the care, protection, and fertilization of onions.