Potato Onions

[delboy]

Found out about these in an old book that belonged to my dad, but sourcing the bulbs has proved tricky.

There seems to be a place on Scotland - Poyntzfield Herb Nursey - but their website and prices are  from 2008..

Has anyone here ever tried them/sourced them?

Thanks in advance

[delboy]

[Sholls]

Has anyone here ever tried them/sourced them?

I believe my grandfather used to grow these, they're essentially large massive shallots.

My recollection of the taste is sketchy, but I think they were mild and slightly sweet. We used to eat them raw in salads & as onion marmalade; they were prolific plants, so there was a lot of onion marmalade.

~~~

I hit the search engines & turned up a reference at botanical.com suggesting that Egyptian onions may be similar, if not identical...

[delboy]

Thanks for that info.

Now I just have to source a supply.

West Country allotmenteers - what do you know?

[Barnowl]

According to this report http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Allium+cepa+aggregatumthere are several varieties of potato onion called allium Cepa Aggregatum.

Jekka (I'm not worthy) calls the Tree onion Allium cepa Proliferum. It seems both have been called Egyptian onion at one time or another and so there may be some out there.

This site has Tree and Potato http://www.pfaf.org/database/plants.php?Allium+cepa+aggregatum



 

[Robert_Brenchley]

Tree onions and Egyptian walking onions (if that's what you're referring to) are topsetting onions; they produce bulbils at the tops of the flower stems. The commonly grown 'shallot' appears to be a potato onion (as opposed to the 'true shallot' which is another species) but I need to find out more about the relationships.

[amphibian]

Tree onions and Egyptian walking onions (if that's what you're referring to) are topsetting onions; they produce bulbils at the tops of the flower stems. The commonly grown 'shallot' appears to be a potato onion (as opposed to the 'true shallot' which is another species) but I need to find out more about the relationships.

The shallot as we grow it is Allium cepa var. aggregatum, Australians call spring onions shallots, which are Allium cepa var. cepa and call Allium cepa var. aggregatum 'true shallots' it seems some others connote the term 'true shallot with Allium oschaninii.

Personally I think the term 'true shallot' is meaningless it means different things to different people and is a prime example of why latin names are so important. Though often even these are little use to vegetable gardeners when such diversity is found within one species, but cultivar names are once again unreliable.

[delboy]

But where do I buy them from?

[amphibian]

But where do I buy them from?

No idea, but I'd love to know.

[longjohn]

Shame - I had so many of these bulbs two years ago that I ran out of room to plant them. However, I lost my crop, presumably because it was so wet. I gave two plants to friends in Portugal, whose plants were thriving last time I visited this winter. I hope to pick some up from them next time I visit - in a few weeks if all goes well.

My sense is that they (yellow potato onions) prefer warmer weather - or at least less frost - than perennial welsh onions, to which they seem to be very similar. My perennial Welsh onions do fine in my alkaline well-draining frost-hollow. So do Egyptian onions and rocambole garlic (a cool-weather-happy top- and bottom-setting garlic that is in its second year and is architecturally gorgeous).

I will check if my friends have potato onion and if they have will report back with bulbs.

If I forget, PM me.

lj

[chriscross1966]

MAny moons ago when I grew veg at my parents place I grew both potato onions and Egyptian onions so I can be positive they are not the same thing.... the potato onions were like a big round mild shallot, but I never really managed to get enough of them for a good crop.....

I'd like to track some more down now I have the space, along with other less "normal" alliums, rocambole would be good if I could beg a few sets from someone..... hopefully I'll have some Catawissa onions to swap by the end of the year as the biggest tree onion on my patch is pretty much certainly a Catawissa and not an ERgyptian (it's basal bulb is white not purple and the thing is getting enormous....

chrisc