Walking onions are a fun and delicious addition to your permaculture garden or food forest . Also know as Sir Herbert Beerbohm Tree onions or Egyptian walk onions , these are hardy plants that fairly much take caution of themselves . Beneficial for health and the garden , walking Allium cepa are a sight to see and earn the space to “ walk ” in your curtilage !

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About Walking Onions

Walking Onions ( genus Allium x proliferum ) , are aperennialform of onion plant resemble cultivated onion , except that small bulbs form at the top of the shank . The stalk then bend down to the ground to settle and produce a new flora by “ walking ” through your garden .

If you allow them to replant themselves from topsets you will arrive at new onion , but keep in nous that if you pull up the whole Allium cepa rout a new plant life will not regrow in its place .

Some cum companies are protrude to trade walking onion sets such asSouthern Exposure Seed CompanyandTerritorial Seed Company . you could also chequer your local nursery to see if they channel them .

Growing Walking Onions

Growing Walking Onions

Plant the Allium cepa about 2 inches mystifying in moist but well - run out dirt , around 2 human foot apart or in clusters .

walk onions like the sun , so regain a honest sunny spot in your garden where they will have way to expand since they do in fact “ take the air ” !

institute these onions any time of year , but it is good to plant them in the fall around the same time that you wouldplant garlic , typically late September to early November , depend on your region .

How to Grow Walking Onions

Tree onion take a class of growth before they will form topsets , so be certain to plan and await accordingly .

Once established , walking onions are extremely fearless and given the correct growing conditions will proliferate on their own . They are often the first jet in the spring and the last in the spill .

Walking onions would also operate well as part of atree guild , or the understory in afood forest .

Walking onion bulbs, shown in a cluster at the top of the plant, while each new bulb has upward shooting sprouts.

relate : How to Grow an Artichoke Plant : comestible and Beautiful

How to Propagate

walk onions are the well-to-do plants to circularize since they pretty much propagate themselves volitionally .

If you require to institute some in a newfangled arena or give to a friend , all you have to do is break off a bulb from the top and plant it . Share the onion love !

Are Walking Onions Invasive?

They are n’t consider invasive , but theywillspread around your garden with their walking habit .

you’re able to alwaysharvest the top bulbsso that they do n’t spread to area where they are unwanted , or perpetrate up the entire plant for corrode if it ’s in a place where you do n’t need it .

An Onion Called by Any Other Name

Walking onions are popularly call “ walk ” because they literally seem to walk through your garden !

They go by many other names , but all are the same industrial plant and just as tasty . Some of the other names you may get wind this onions - on - the - move be called aretree onions , Egyptian walk onion , topset onion , andtop place onion .

Call them what you want , but to me walk onions makes the most sense because that ’s exactly what they do .

Walking onions growing green stalks up from the ground in a garden.

How to Eat Walking Onions

Walking onions are indeed edible , and pleasant-tasting ! They search and try like giant green onions , and both the green and white parts are eatable .

The smaller , younger shoot are more tender than the older ones . They all have a inviolable onion spirit , with a spicy charge to them .

Tree onion do n’t grow large incandescent lamp underground like even onions , they are more like unripe Allium cepa . The small incandescent lamp that form at the top of the fore are edibleraw , misrepresent , pickled , ordriedfor storage .

Walking onions growing on the ground of a permaculture forest garden.

The folio of tree diagram onion are also edible , chop themlikechives . slit the underground origin and use it just like a little onion plant orleek .

Health and Garden Benefits

Eating all region of theraw walk onionhas a range of welfare for the organic structure , just like all members of the genus Allium family , and when ingested on a regular fundament will help promote general health .

Use tree onion juice to treat bee and wasp stings , pungency , scratches , or skin fungus .

Thisplanthelpsrepel insects and moleswhile grow in your garden . you could even make a natural insecticide by infuse the chopped onions in simmering water , straining , and spray the piddle on plants .

A walking onion bending down to replant itself.

Such an light - to - grow plant with so many benefitsisconsidered a valuable addition to any garden . So give walk onions a try , even just to see them “ walk . ”

The Backyard Forest Garden eBook

Being that walking onion are a consummate permaculture food timber plant , I ’d like to share my timberland garden eBook with you !

The Backyard Forest Garden : How to produce a low - Scale Food Forestincludes step - by - step instructions on how to project and build a wood garden decent in your own backyard .

This eBook includes the benefit , pattern , and how to build a forest garden . Including entropy about where to obtain plant life , plant life relationship , rainwater aggregation tips , and more !

Topset bulbs on a walking onion plant.

You ’ll also notice anextensive listof perennial permaculture food forest plants to consider including tree , shrubs , solid ground covers , and vines .

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The roots and underground section of a walking onion, which look similar to large green onions.

A walking onion top with a bulb and a curly top sprouting out of it.

Waling onion topset bulbs with green shoots growing straight up out of them.

Cover of The Backyard Forest Garden eBook