About a month ago Eric and I took a trip up to Mary’s plant farm to pick up this rose. I gave mine a haircut before we got in the car as it was a rose with an attitude as far as thorns go. It opened its first bloom today. Gorgeous isn’t it?
My Walking Onions (Catawissa) are stretching their legs in preparation for their journey. Walking onions are very hardy perennial onions that propagate by setting bulbs at the top of the plant which then may go on to set bulbs of their own. As the bulbs grow and gain weight they fall over and root where they touch the ground. I mainly use these for green onions as the bulbs are too small to do much with. I’ve heard they are good pickled but I’ve yet to have enough to try it.
4 responses so far ↓
1 Melissa // May 9, 2007 at 6:48 am
That onion photo is fantastic. i love it when nature does such unusual things. You can kind of tell what it is but really it’s a shape all of its’ own. Interested also to hear they are called “walking onions”. Last year, here in Australia (Canberra), I grew some heirloom onions called “tree onions”. I harvested them, not really thinking that they might hit the ground and perpetuate themselves. They are really tiny little bulbs and to cook them, I put the whole cluster in the oven on an oven sheet and roast them. I sort of rub off most of the papery bits but leave the last layer on. Then when they come out I pop them in my mouth and they are roasty, sweet, onion morsels – would be nice in a salad.
2 kerry // May 9, 2007 at 7:58 pm
Sounds like the same type of onion. I will have to try your recipe, thanks for sharing it. I never considered roasting them but I bet they are good.
3 Karin // Nov 19, 2007 at 5:26 pm
I think I may have walking onion in my Community Garden plots, but am not certain as they are being called “onions” and the ones I have certainly taste of the strongest garlic I have ever had. The bulblets and topsets look exactly like what I’ve seen of the Egyptian Walking Onion – it’s just the taste that confounds me. Also, does this onion have layers? What grows in my garden is nearly round with only one very tough, brown skin on it. And mine don’t fall over either. I’ve read that they propagate themselves by the topsets tipping over and new growth starting from this. The ones in my garden don’t fall over. The central stem is tough as well and the single, round “garlic” bulbs just keep on growing up top. What do your walking onions taste like? No one here whom I have spoken to can confirm one way or another that this is a walking onion because no one else has them. The gardeners who had the plot before me were elderly and are no longer members of the community garden. If you could provide some more information on your walking onion for comparison that would be wonderful. By the way, I’m in Canada – West Coast, Vancouver.
4 kerry // Nov 24, 2007 at 12:47 pm
Hmmm. I’m not sure what you have. Do they look like the pictures here? http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/31430/
The ‘onions’ as in bulbs on mine are very small, about the size of a marble at best. They can be very hot, I usually just eat the green part of the plant and save the bulbs for planting or giving away. I did notice this year (2nd or 3rd year they have been in the ground) that the inground part seemed larger than last year. They don’t get very large either, more like a fat green onion than an actual bulb.
Another though. Perhaps they are some kind of cross? Perhaps you have something special there.
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