ONION CULTIVATION BY SOCCAR SACHIN

1. ONION

2. Introduction
• Common name : onion
• Scientific name: Allium cepa
• Family: Alliaceae
• Origin: Asia

5. Distribution

8. Nutritional Value

13. Medicinal Value

18. Botany
• Biennial herb
• Leaves are tubular
• Bulbs are formed by attachment of swollen
leaf base to underground part of stem
• Flowers are produced during second phase
after bulb formation
• Flowering structure : umbel

19. Types of onion
1.COMMON ONION :Allium cepa var cepa
(2n=16)
 Most widely cultivated
Large bulb
Propagated through seeds
Used in salad and curries

20. 2.Multiplier onion/potato onion :
Allium cepa var aggregatum(2n=16)
Small bulbs in cluster
Propagated through small bulbs
Used for seasoning curries

21. Based on color

27. Varieties

39. Cultivation
Soil:
• Well drained ,loose & friable
• Rich in humus
• Highly sensitive to acidity & alkalinity
• Ph:5.8-6.5
• Clay soils are not preferred due to small and
deformed bulbs are produced

40. Climate:
• Cool and moist
• Average rainfall : 75-100mm
• Optimum temperature: vegetative growth :12.8-23°C
bulb formation:20.25°C
• Long day type cultivated in hilly tracks
• Short day type cultivated in plains
• Low temperature in early stage cause bolting whereas
high temperature results in small sied bulb

41. Methods of planting
1.Broadcasting /drilling of seeds :
• Direct sowing @ 30cm
• Saves labour for transpalnting
• High seed requirement -25kg/ha
• Weeding should be done at intervals of
10days
• When bulbs are 6-8 weeks old,seedling should
be thinned to proper distance

43. 2.Transpalnting method
• Most common method practiced for irrigated
crops
• In plains seeds are sown during October-
November for a rabi crop
• In hills seed are sown during March-June
• Seeds are sown in well prepared nursery bed of
1.2mt width ,7.5-10cm height and conventional
length
• Seed rate -8-10kg/ha
• Seedlings can be transplanted after 8 weeks,
seedlings should be 15cm height and 0.8cm neck
diameter is ideal
• seedlings transplanted at spacing of 15*10cm

45. 3.planting of bulbs
• This method practiced in hill slope and terrece
cultivation
• Medium to small sized bulbs are used for planting
,large sized bulbs results in early bolting ang high
cost
• Medium sized bulbs obtained from june crop
used for planting in September-October
• Bulbs are dribbled at 45*15cm
• 1-1.2t of bulbs are required for planting

46. Manures and fertilisers
• 20-25t of FYM at time of ploughing
• 125kg N,75 kg P2O5,125 Kg K2O
• Entire dose of p & k are applied at time of final
land preparation
• Nitogen to be top-dressed in 2 splits first half
at 3-4 weeks after transplanting ,second half
at 2 months after transplanting

47. Irrigation
• Requirement of watere varies with stages of crop
• Requires less water after establishment of
seedling
• Maximunm requirement of water is at maturity
stage around 3 months after transplanting
• In kharif 8-10 irrigations
• Late kharif crops requires 12-15 irrigation
• In rabi season 15-20 irrigation

49. Weeding and interculture
• Herbicides used for control are
 Tenoran @ 2.5 Kg/ha 3-5 weeks after
transplanting
Applications of Basalin @ 1 l/ha immediately
after transplanting
Stomp @ 3.35 l/ha after transpalnting and
before first irrigation with one hand weeding

50. Plant protection
1. Damping off- fusarim spp , pythium spp
• Seed rotting
• Pre emergence & post emergence damping
off seedlings whenever onion grown from
seeds
• Seed treatment with thiram @2.5/kg
• Drenching of nursery bed with captaf
@2.5g/l of H2O

51. Purple blotch-Alternaria porri
• Large bleached lesions with purple centre ,
rapidly enlarged leading to rot of infected
bulbs
• Spray Dithane M-45 @ 0.25% with sticker
triton 0.1% first spray on appearance of
disease followed by spray @ 15 days interval

53. Black mould :Aspergillus niger
• Common storage disease
• Black powdery mass of spores of black mould
on exterior of scales
• Colored varieties are more susceptible than
white ones
• Protect bulbs from moisture after harvest
• Store the bulbs @ 0°C

55. Bottom rot / basal rot : fusarium oxysporum
• Soil borne disease
• Yellowing and dying back from the tips of
leaves
• Follow crop rotations upto 4 years
• 2-3 times summer ploughing
• Store the bulbs @ 0-1c
• Soil drenching with captaf or thiram @0.2%

56. v

57. Thrips : Thrips tabaci
• Both larvae and adults causes injury
• Feed by rasping surface of leaves and sucking
liberated juice
• Silvery appearance
• Spray 0.1% Malathion +0.1% Sandovit ,4sprays @
15 days interval
• Spray metasystox @ 1ml/l of H2O+Sandovit 0.1%

59. Physiological disorders

60. Harvesting & Yield
• 3-5 months after transplanting depending on variety
• Best time for harvesting of Rabi onion is one week
after 50-70% neck fall
• Kharif since tops do not fall but after colour of leaves
changes to slightly yellow , tops start drying
• Harvesting is done by pulling out plants
• Average yield of big sized onions=25-30t/ha
small sized onions =16-20t/ha
multiplier onions =15-18t/ha

62. Post harvest management
Drying & curing :
• Drying is an additional process of aiding th skin
color to remove field heat
• In northern India kharif season curing requires 2-
3 weeks along with tops
rabi bulbs cured in field for 3-5 days in windrow
method
• Curing for 10-12 days in shade helps in
development of more no of skins and heir
retention for longer period

63. Grading :
• Cured bulbs are graded on size and depending
on market
• Big sized onions are demand in Delhi
• medium to big sized onion in bangalore
,hyderabad,bhopal
• Medium bulbs in kolkata ,patna
• Small sized onions in north eastern regions

65.  Storage :
• Cured bulbs are stored in well ventilated rooms
• Pre harvest spray o maleic hydrazide (2000-2500ppm) prevents
rotting and sprouting of bulbs stored @ room temperature
• At BARC,trombay irradiatin of bulbs with low doses (4000-
9000krads) of gamma rays is effective
• Bulbs harvested in kharif can be stored @ 0.2-2.2c under cold
storage
• NHRDF&NAFED erected storage structures in Nasik i.e 3 types
1.panipat type 2 tiered
2.3tier onion store
3.2 tier model were established by government

66. Panipat type 2 storied structure:
• Storage capacity -4t
• 15% less loss than conventional method
Three tier model store: pimpal gaon, nasik
• Storage capacity=750t
• 20% less loss than conventional method
Two tier model store: lasal gaon ,nasik
• Storage capacity=50t/tier
• 15% less loss than conventional loss

67. Packaging & Transportation
• Onions are packed in jute/ gunny bags
• Onions stocks are transported in carts,
tractors,trucks for local markets
• By railway for long distance within the country
• Through ventilated ships ,motor boats the
onions are transported to gulf and south east
asian countries

68. Marketing
• About 60-65% is consumed internally and
used as seed materials and 5% is exported
• The cooperatives like NAFED plays a significant
role in marketing
• Lasalgaon in MAHARASTRA is the biggest
onion market in India

69. Dehydrated onion
Advantages :Storage stability and ease of
preparation
Commercial processing plants have a
shrinkage ratio of 7:1-17:1 with moisture
content of 4%
Dehydreated onion sold in many forms as
slices , chopped ,minced , granulated &
powdered

70. Characteristics of dehydrated onion
bulbs
• White / red / yellow onion preferred
• TSS should be 15-20 brix
• Small neck with tall globe shape
• Large bulbs
• Pungency should be high
• Bulbs should have good stability with
minimum shrinkage and rotting
• Moisture content should be around 80%

71. Seed production
• Onion is a cross pollinated crop
• Isolation distance should be 1000-1600m and
500m is recommended for certified and
foundation seed production
• Seed to seed method and bulb to seed
methods are commonly followed

81. References
• Text book of vegetables and tubercrops
and spices-ICAR
• Vegetable crops production technology-
R.VHOUDHARY
R.S.DHAKA