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Preventing Thrips Damage in Onions
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March 2010
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Dear Fellow Gardener,
While caring for your onions, there's a nasty
little pest that you need to watch out for:
thrips. Onion
thrips are tiny sucking insects that
pierce the onion leaf and extract the juices
stored there. These miniscule critters can
complete their life cycle in as little as two
weeks; I often joke that they're born
pregnant. Even worse, female thrips don't
need to mate in order to lay fertile eggs.
Females lay eggs in onion leaves; they hatch
shortly thereafter, and the larva immediately
start feeding. After a few days, the larvae
pupate and begin the second stage of their
two-stage lives as adults. They reach
adulthood 17 to 30 days after the eggs are laid.
Adult onion
thrips prefer the top section of the
onion plant in the mid-afternoon; the larvae
stick to the center of the plant. You'll need
to keep this mind when applying insecticides
to control these pests. You'll also need to
apply the insecticide frequently, given their
very short life cycle; weekly applications
are best. Just remember to vary the
insecticide on a weekly basis for optimum
control, since thrips can quickly generate
tolerance to insecticides.
Thrips are hard to see with the naked eye. If
you're worried about whether or not your
plants are infected, the easiest way to check
is to cup your hand at the base of the plant
and slap the tops in that direction. The
adult thrips will fall into your hand; they
resemble small fleas. If you have adult
thrips, you can assume you have larvae, too.
If you count more than 10 thrips during a
test, start spraying immediately, and
continue weekly sprayings throughout the
growing season. Keep these facts in mind:
activity
increases as the temperature rises, and
there's a strong correlation between total
yield and the thrips population.
As if sucking your plants dry wasn't enough,
there's a new viral disease called Iris
Yellow Spot Virus (IYSV) that thrips can
transmit to your onions. There's no cure for
IYSV; and since this virus severely impacts
the foliage and will ultimately ruin the
crop, you'll need to destroy the infected
plants and start spraying for thrips right away.
Here's wishing you healthy onions,

Bruce "Onionman" Frasier
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Tip of the Month
Growing Onions in Raised Beds
Raised beds are popular choices for those
gardeners with limited space or poor soils,
and they're a viable option for growing
onions -- as long as you keep a few things in
mind. First of all, consider the root
systems. Onions are shallow-rooted, with most
roots concentrated within
eight inches of the plant itself. Therefore,
the rows should be at least eight inches
apart; otherwise they're going to compete for
the same nutrients.
On the other hand, you can space your onion
plants as close together as four inches
within the rows. However, the farther apart
they are, the bigger the onions can grow -- and
some varieties, like the Ailsa Craig, can
grow very large indeed. On the vertical
scale, be sure the soil is soft enough for
root penetration to at least a foot deep.
Another consequence of crowding onions is
that doing so will impede air flow through
your crop, so that they won't dry out as
quickly when it rains or when you water. This
can result in more fungal diseases of the
foliage, which may ultimately kill the
plants. Be sure to spray
fungicides
as often as once every ten days or so to
prevent disease.
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From Our Friends
Check out Oklahoma native Melvin Kowalski's
recent crop of short day and intermediate day
onions -- impressive!
We love hearing from you! Send us
your
favorite "onion photo" and we'll try to
include it in a
future newsletter, our next catalog or our
online Photo Album. Click
here for details on how to
submit your photos.
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Around the Farm
Back in 1982, when I decided to get out of the
Army, Jeanie and I were expecting our first
baby. We were living with Jeanie's parents
until Rebecca was born, and I was scheduled
to fly out to Missouri for a final interview
with Proctor and Gamble to manage a Pampers
plant. Not bad; at least I could get some free
diapers!
While sitting at the breakfast table one day,
Jeanie's dad, Wallace Martin, asked me if
that was what I really wanted to do. I
told
him no -- what I really wanted to do was to go
to work for him, but he hadn't offered me a
job. His reaction was, "Well, I'm offering
you one now."
I asked him what he wanted me to do, and he
told me to go buy a pickup after breakfast.
So I went down to the local car dealer and
told him who I was. He said to pick out
anything I wanted, and Wallace would bring a
check down later when he came to town. I
bought the plainest pickup they had on the
lot. When I returned to Wallace's home, I
could tell that he approved of my frugal
purchase.
I then asked him what to do next. He said to
go to the farm and see Miguel, who was the
farm foreman -- and that for the next two years,
I would go see Miguel every day and ask him
what he needed me to do. Wallace told me,
"For the next two years, the biggest decision
you're going to make is how you want your
eggs for breakfast!" That's how I learned to
farm, and how I learned that growing a good
crop is more important than just about
anything else.
Wallace is 85 years young now, and still
comes to the farm twice a day to see if I
need any help or advice with making decisions.
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Cooking With Onions
Betty Carol Gilbert's Onion Casserole
- 1 pound of sliced onions, separated into
rings
- 1 beaten egg
- 1/2 cup of sharp Cheddar cheese
(shredded)
- 1 cup of heavy cream
- 3/4 teaspoon of salt
- 1/2 teaspoon of ground pepper
- Paprika to taste
After preheating your oven to 350 degrees,
arrange the onion rings in a medium saucepan
and cover them with water. Boil the mixture
for one minute on the stovetop, then drain
the water and transfer the onions to an
8-inch baking dish.
Next, combine all the remaining ingredients
except the cheese and paprika in a bowl, mix
thoroughly, and pour the mixture over the
onions. Then sprinkle the casserole with
cheese and paprika to taste, and bake it for
25 minutes.
Makes 6 servings.
Onions can enhance so many dishes, from
simple
salads to complex entrees; and they can also be
consumed raw, fried, sautéed or baked. We
periodically receive sumptuous recipe
suggestions
from our employees and from you, our customers.
We want to share one with you each month, so
that
you can take full advantage of the fruits of
your labor! If
you have one you would like us to print,
please email it
to us at
customerservice@dixondalefarms.com.
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Q&A: Dealing With Downy Mildew
Q. What is downy mildew, and how do I
treat it?
A. Downy mildew is one of the most
common diseases that you may face during the
growing season. This foliar condition is
caused by a pathogen called Peronospora
destructor that hits the older leaves first,
manifesting as drawn-out pale or yellowish
patches that may or may not be accompanied by
a grayish-violet fuzz. Infected leaves will
fade to pale green and then to yellow,
ultimately folding over and collapsing. The
result is decreased bulb sizes.
Downy mildew is most common when the weather
is wet and cool (lower than 72º F), and can
occur repeatedly during the same season -- so
just because you've stamped it out once
doesn't mean it won't come back. Spores
can even overwinter on plant debris,
volunteer onions, and stored bulbs. They can
survive for up to 5 years, even in very cold
weather.
Weekly applications of Mancozeb
can protect against downy mildew, as long
as you spray the crop thoroughly and only
before the disease appears. Other, more
costly alternatives are Ridomil, Pristine,
Quadris, Rovral, and Bravo. Organic efforts
using Seacide
will protect the plant by coating the
leaves, making it more difficult for the
spores to get a grip.
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Fun Onion Facts
Back when the West was wild and cowboys still
wandered the open range, they often made do
with the wild prairie onion, Allium
stellatum, for their culinary
concoctions. Better known as the "skunk egg"
due to its powerful odor, it was an important
ingredient of a commonly-served dish known as
SOB stew (and yes, that's the PG version of
the name!).
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Send Us Your Product Reviews!
In addition to sending us recipes and photos
of your
onions, we encourage you to give us
feedback on our products. You'll find
a "write your own review" link on every
product page. Don't be shy -- we need
your opinions!
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About Dixondale Farms
As the largest and oldest onion plant farm in
the U.S.,
Dixondale Farms offers a wide selection of
top-quality,
disease-free, ready-to-plant onion plants.
To see our
complete product line, request a catalog, or for
growing tips and cultural information, visit our
Web site by clicking
here.
Whether you're planting one bunch or
thousands of
acres, we're committed to your success. If
you have
either questions or suggestions, we'd love to
hear
from you. You can reach us from 8:00 AM to
5:00 PM
Central
Time at 877-367-1015, or
e-mail us any time
at
customerservice@dixondalefarms.com.
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