Onion 'Ailsa Craig' (Allium cepa) – Mild Globe Onion Plants (12 Plants in 2 x 6-Cell Trays)

Ailsa Craig is one of the most popular onions for UK vegetable plots, grown for its large, globe-shaped bulbs with a mild, sweet flavour. You receive 12 young onion plants, growing in 2 plastic 6-cell trays with one plant to each cell, ready to grow on and plant out into a vegetable plot, raised bed or large container.

Ailsa Craig has been a garden favourite for well over a century, giving good yields of straw-yellow, thin-skinned bulbs, up to 15cm across depending on variety and growing conditions. The bulbs are good for fresh use and store well, so they suit both beginners and experienced growers. The foliage is upright, hollow and blue-green, with the bulb swelling at the base.

Plant out after the risk of hard frost has passed, from mid-spring onwards, in full sun on fertile, well-drained soil. Space plants about 10cm apart in rows 25 to 30cm apart. Avoid waterlogged ground.

Water regularly in dry spells while the bulbs are swelling, then ease off as they ripen. Harvest when the foliage yellows and topples, and let the bulbs dry fully before storing them somewhere cool, dry and well ventilated.

Onions are alliums and are harmful to dogs and cats if eaten.

Cultural Information

• Common Name: Ailsa Craig Onion, Exhibition Onion
• Botanical Name: Allium cepa
• Eventually Reaches: 25-90cm tall and 10-25cm wide
• Growth Habit: Upright, strap-leaved foliage with a large bulb swelling at the base
• Perfect For: Vegetable plots, raised beds, kitchen gardens, allotments, large containers
• Foliage: Upright, hollow, blue-green strap leaves
• Planting Position: Full sun, in an open, sunny site
• Soil Type: Fertile, moisture retentive but well-drained soil
• Hardiness: Grown as a spring-planted summer crop and lifted before winter
• Seasonal Interest: Summer to autumn
• Type: Grow Your Own, bulb onion