Question from Dee:
I emaied you about shallots before.I washed them after I pulled them up but it seems like some of the skins came off.What is the best way to wash without pulling off skins? I planted them in spring( sets)some of them grew but others didn’t.I live in Southern Mississippi zone 9.I was under the understanding you could grow them in spring also.Help!
Answer from Pat:
In cold winter climates shallots should be planted in spring. In mild climates, plant shallots in fall. In Southern Mississipi, USDA Zone 9, I would suppose that your winter is mild enough that you should have planted shallots in fall to allow them a longer growing season. Try this next time. If you plant garlic and short-day onions in fall that is also when you should plant shallots. Shallots are a cool-season crop and need a long growing season. Fall planting allows them longer vegetative growth and that results in larger bulbs when the bulbs finally expand in spring. For example, here in Southern California where I live shallots often grow much bigger than they do in France. Also when you plant in fall, there will be time for them to go dry in the ground at the end of the growing season in late May and June. Then the skins won’t wash off if you need to rinse them off prior to storage. But if you grow them as I have described you may find that washing prior to storage is unnecessary.
Plant shallots from sets (small individual bulbs). Plant 8-inches apart in rows 12-inches apart. Since shallots make a clump, they need more space than garlic. Shallots need well-drained soil, amended with aged manure (not wood products) and organic fertilizers. Heavy soil can be a problem. Don’t use mulch since mulch may rot them. Plant just deep enough so the tip of the bulb is level with the ground. Shallots need approximately one inch of rainfall or irrigation per week to form bulbs.
From your question it sounds as if you harvested shallots before they were ready. For example, in the north of France, where shallots are planted in spring and the climate has rainfall year round, gardeners harvest shallots in July and August. Usually they just pull enough needed for a meal and leave the rest in the ground to continue growing until the tops go brown in fall. Then they pull the rest and store them for winter use.
Next time, as I already explained, you can start harvesting for immediate use when the bulbs are big enough, but if you want to store the bulbs, wait until the tops go brown before harvesting. When your garlic and fall-planted onions are ready to harvest that should be the right time to harvest shallots also, but be sure to stop watering them for a week or two first so the soil dries out, the tops go brown and the bulbs go dormant. Then pull them up, brush off the earth, and dry them dry them on newspaper in a cool dry place such as the garage. When the outer skin is totally dry, it’s safe to wash them off if you feel you must do so. But don’t let them sit in a bucket of water, just rinse them quickly and then once again let them dry on newspaper in the garage as I’ve already explained. Or you can wait and wash them prior to cooking. Your question is interesting since a more frequent problem with shallots is the long time it takes to clean the bulbs and get the papery skin off before cooking.
For more details about storing shallots, please follow this link to refer to what I’ve already written on this subject. http://patwelsh.com/wpmu/blog/vegetables/when-to-harvest-shallots/
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I meant to tell you that the reason I pulled up the shallots the tops were dead.I thought that is when you pull them up.You live and learn. God Bless
Sounds as if you pulled them at the right time, Dee. Chances are you’re doing everything correctly.