Starter Bulb
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Starter bulbs, also known as sets, are immature
bulb In botany, a bulb is a short underground stem with fleshy leaves or leaf basesBell, A.D. 1997. ''Plant form: an illustrated guide to flowering plant morphology''. Oxford University Press, Oxford, U.K. that function as food storage organs duri ...
s used in horticulture to propagate onions (''
Allium cepa An onion (''Allium cepa'' , from Latin ), also known as the bulb onion or common onion, is a vegetable that is the most widely cultivated species of the genus ''Allium''. The shallot is a botanical variety of the onion which was classified ...
''). Because onions can take more than 5–6 months to reach maturity, many growers with shorter growing windows prefer to grow onions from starter bulbs rather than seed. Onion seeds are cultivated in the spring and the resultant bulbs are harvested in autumn. These bulbs are similar in appearance to the mature onion, but much smaller in size. The starter bulbs are stored in a cool, dark place over winter. The next spring, the starter bulbs are planted in rows, apart. Although this method ensures a larger mature onion, it is more costly.


See also

* List of ''Allium'' species * List of onion cultivars


References

Onions {{Horticulture-stub