Scallions, aka green onions or spring onions, are some of the easiest vegetables to grow at home. They don’t require much space, grow quickly, and you can harvest them several times from a single planting. Best of all, scallions provide a bright, crunchy, and gentle onion flavor to nearly any preparation. Backyard garden or balcony, or even just a sunny windowsill, you can grow scallions with minimal effort.
This guide will take you through everything you need to know on how to grow scallions, planting and harvesting them, and it will also show you how to regrow these green onions indefinitely from kitchen scraps.
Why Grow Scallions?
Scallions make for a good crop for rookies and veterans. Here’s why:
Rapid Growth: Can be ready to harvest in 20-30 days.
Easy Care: Scallions don’t require rich soil or pampering.
Small Space Friendly: Grow them in pots, in raised beds and even in plastic containers.
Cut-and-Come: You can clip off the tops and let them regrow several times.
Kitchen Basics: Ideal for soups, stir-fries, salads, omelets, and garnishes.
For these reasons, scallions are often referred to as a “gateway vegetable. After you’ve mastered them, you’ll probably feel more comfortable experimenting with other crops.
Choosing the Right Scallions
There are a couple different types of scallions you can grow:
True Scallions (Allium fistulosum) – Never develops a big bulb at the base. They stay slender and tender.
Bunching Onions: These act like scallions, but you can harvest them on the early side for that mild flavor.
Bulbing Onions Picked Young: Regular onions (or even some scallion varieties) that receive the small amount of growing space required will be harvested for scallions, before the bulb has had a chance to start swelling.
If what you’re after are June’s consistent, long, straight stalks, what you want are varieties marked “bunching onions” or “scallions” in seed catalogues.
Growing Scallions from Seeds
Step 1: Preparing the soil
Scallions prefer loose, well-drained soil. They do not require super wealthy earth; though we can add compost or aged manure to turbo age them. Adopt a soil PH of 6.0 to 7.0.
When planting in pots, it is best not to make use of heavy garden soil but instead do it in light potting mix.
Step 2: Planting seeds.
Direct sowing: The seeds should be scattered in shallow rows 1/4 inch deep. Sprinkle over with soil, water gently.
Spacing: put seeds 1-2 inches apart. Subsequently, when they are too crowded, thin them then.
Temperature: Scallion seeds planted outdoors grow best at between 60 and 75°F (15-24°C).
Step 3: Watering and Care
Evenly water the soil particularly in the early stages of growing. The roots of the scallions are shallow, and thus they get dry easily. But make sure that it is not waterlogged as wet soil may result in rot.
Step 4: Fertilization
Scallions do not require heavy fertilization. Having crappy soil? Just shake in some 10-10-10 or other all-purpose fertilizer (once or twice throughout the growing season).
Growing Scallions from Sets or Transplants
To get a jump on germinating seeds, start scallions with onion sets (small immature bulbs) instead, or go buy young scallion plants at a nursery. Just poke the sets into the soil, pointy end up, to a depth of about 1 inch and spaced 2 inches apart. They will grow fast and will be ready to harvest within a couple weeks.
Re-growing Scallions from Kitchen Scraps
It is probably the most amazing quality of scallions: you can never stop growing them out of the scrap in your fridge.
How to:
- You may keep the white ends of the roots (2 inches long at least) after the use of the green tops.
- Put these in a glass of sufficient water in which it may cover the roots.
- Put the glass on a windowsill where plenty of sunshine is available and replenish the water after 2 to 3 days.
- In a week or so, you will have fresh green shoots.
- Harvest by taking a few inches off each when they are at that height and either continue harvesting off the glass, or plant them in soil to grow more vigorously.
This technique is ideal in instances where individuals do not even have some garden space.
Growing Scallions in Containers
Scallions are among the best to plant in containers; especially when you live in an apartment, or don’t have a lot of area to plant.
Container Depth: A pot that is not less than 6 inches deep should suffice. When there is a more substantial quantity to grow, longer window boxes are the best.
Drainage: Ensure that the pot does not have closed bottoms to cause wet roots.
Planting Density: Scallions can be planted very densely almost 1 inch apart. Since they do not require a lot of space, you can plant dozens in a small area.
Caring for Scallions
These are the most important points to keep in mind when growing:
Sunlight: Scallions grow well in full sun (6+ hours per day) though they do fine in part shade.
Watering: Do not over-saturate the soil but keep it moist. When watered regularly, stalks are sweet and tender.
Weeding: Uproot weeds to make sure the scallions do not get crowded out all the time because they are shallow rooted.
Pests: They are pest-free to a large extent, but at times onion maggots and thrips can be encountered. Rotating crops and clean soil are some of the ways to prevent these.
Harvesting Scallions
The scallions may be used when they are only as big as a pencil. This depends on the variety, but in most it will have about 3-4 weeks after planting to be ready.
There are two ways of harvesting:
- Cut-and-Come-Again: Clip off the green tops 2 inches down at the bottom. The plant can sprout new shoots again where you will have many harvests.
- Harvest of Whole Plant: Take the entire scallion with the roots. Replant the seeds every 2 to 3 weeks in order to have a constant production
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Although they are not that difficult to grow, inexperienced users may still experience a problem with scallions. Some of the pitfalls to avoid are the following:
Over-Watering: Acts as a cause for root rot. Do not flood but keep using water regularly.
Crowding: It requires plants to grow up and straight. Prune off seedlings (as is needful).
Harvesting Too Late: Patience lost – Scallions are best when young. When not cooked enough, they should be cooked longer until they are translucent and tender.
Abandoning the Sunlight: Lack of sun will result in scallions that are too thin.
Companion Planting of Scallions
A good company in your garden is scallions as they keep pests away due to the onion scent they have. Getting this natural pest repellent would be to plant them near carrots, beets, lettuce, and tomatoes. Planting them in association with beans or peas will inhibit development in both.
Storing Scallions
Just harvested scallions will store a week in the refrigerator. Put them in a damp paper towel and store in a plastic bag in order to increase their shelf life.
Next trick is to keep them standing up in a glass of water which may be at the bottom of a jar. Put in a plastic bag loosely and store in the refrigerator. That can preserve them as long as two or three weeks.
Using Scallions in the Kitchen
Much of the fun in growing scallions is to eat them. Here is some advice on using some of your harvest:
- Give a crunchy crunch into salads.
- Add as garnish to soups and stews.
- Toss into a dish of fried rice or noodles.
- Add to omelets and scrambled eggs.
- Add to dips and sauces to add flavor.
Scallions do not taste strong, and thus will not compete with other ingredients. They rather make a dish look fresher and brighter, and basically this applies to any dish.
How to Grow Scallions: Final Thoughts
One of the easiest things to make a logical start to gardening is to grow scallions. Given a bit of care you will end up with a constant supply of crisp, tasty greens that can come back week-after-week.
They grow in a backyard bed, a pot on your balcony, or even just from kitchen scraps in a glass of water, scallions will pay off by delivering with fast germination and unlimited culinary potential.
So, take some seeds or save the next clump of roots from your grocery store scallions, and get growing today. Soon you won’t know why you ever purchased scallions at the market.
