Sprouted Onions: Safe to Eat or Grow a New Crop
Gardeners, rejoice! Sprouted onions, once considered past their prime, can now be safely consumed or transformed into a bumper crop. Here's how to make the most of these overlooked vegetables.
First, check if the sprouted onion is still safe to eat. A dry, papery exterior and shrunk size indicate it's still good. Once you've confirmed it's not spoiling or molding, you can either consume it or propagate it.
To grow new onions, divide the sprouted onion and plant each section. These onions can handle a light frost and should be planted outdoors about a month before the last spring frost. Once out of cold storage, onions may start sprouting again, signaling they're ready for planting. Harvesting takes about 65 to 80 days after planting. Onions thrive in well-drained soil with ample water and minimal weedy competition.
Planting sprouted onions can yield more onions than you started with. Each sprouted onion can produce multiple distinct onion plants. You can plant them directly into the garden or pot them up indoors.
So, don't discard sprouted onions just yet. They can be safely eaten or turned into a bountiful harvest. With proper care, you could be enjoying a surplus of homegrown onions in just a few months.
