Shallot
Allium cepa var. aggregatum
Amaryllidaceae · onion family
- Matures
- 90–110 days
- Harvest
- Once · Annual
- Sun
- 6–8+ hrs
- Spacing
- 2–4 in
Planting window
When to sow, by microclimate — foggier blocks run a different calendar than sunnier ones.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foggy | ● | ● | ||||
| Sunny | ● |
| Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Foggy | ● | ● | ● | |||
| Sunny | ● | ● |
Well-suitedMarginalNot suited
Sunlight
How well it does at each level of direct sun per day.
<2 hrsNot suited
2–4 hrsNot suited
4–6 hrsMarginal
6–8 hrsWell-suited
8+ hrsWell-suited
Well-suitedMarginalNot suited
Soil depth
Root room it needs — useful for sizing raised beds and containers.
6–10"Well-suited
10–15"Well-suited
15–18"Well-suited
18–24"Well-suited
Well-suitedMarginalNot suited
Spacing
Room each plant needs — along the row and between rows — for sizing beds.
- In-row
- 2–4 in
- Between rows
- 12–18 in
Growth habit
The shape it makes in the bed and how tall it gets — what tells you whether to give it a trellis, a stake, or just room.
- Habit
- Upright
- Mature height
- 12–18 in
Stands on its own; the tallest types appreciate a stake in wind.
How to start it
Sow it where it grows, or raise it under cover and set it out — and how far ahead to start the seedlings if it's the latter.
- Usually
- Direct-sow
Direct-sowWell-suited
TransplantNot suited
Sown straight into the bed it will grow in.
Well-suitedMarginalNot suited
Getting started
How it goes in the ground — how deep to sow or set it, and the soil temperature it needs to wake up. The cold-soil floor is the real limiter for direct-sowing in a foggy SF spring.
- Started from
- From bulbs / sets
- Ideal soil temp
- 65–85°F
- Set depth
- 1–2 in
Sprouts between 32–95°F; happiest around 65–85°F.
30°F110°F
IdealWorkable
Pests & diseases
What tends to trouble this crop — what it is, what you'll see, and what to do about it, least-toxic first.
Pests3
Aphids
- What it is
- Aphids have soft pear-shaped bodies with long legs and antennae and may be green, yellow, brown, red, or black depending on the species and the plants they feed on. A few species appear waxy or woolly due to the secretion of a waxy white or gray substance over their body surface.
- What you'll see
- Low to moderate numbers of leaf-feeding aphids aren't usually damaging in gardens or on trees. However, large populations can turn leaves yellow and stunt shoots; aphids can also produce large quantities of a sticky exudate known as honeydew, which often turns black with the growth of a sooty mold fungus.
- What to do
- Before planting vegetables, check surrounding areas for sources of aphids and remove these sources. On the other hand, these aphid-infested weeds can sometimes provide an early source of aphid natural enemies.
Onion Maggot
- What you'll see
- White worm that feeds on seedlings, roots or bulbs.
- What to do
- Use crop rotation, avoid excessive amounts of organic matter, and apply insecticides at planting if maggots have been a problem in the past. Destroy infected plants.
Thrips
- What it is
- Most adult thrips are elongate, slender, minute (less than 1/20 inch long), and have long fringes on the margins of both pairs of their long, narrow wings. Immatures (called larvae or nymphs) are oblong or slender and elongate and lack wings.
- What you'll see
- Thrips feeding on plants can damage fruit, leaves, and shoots and very noticeably affect plants’ cosmetic appearance. However, thrips rarely kill or threaten the survival of trees and shrubs.
- What to do
- Thrips species that feed on many different plant species often move into gardens and landscapes when plants in weedy areas or grasslands begin to dry in spring or summer. Avoid planting susceptible plants next to these areas, and control nearby weeds that are alternate hosts of pest thrips.
Diseases2
Botrytis
- What you'll see
- Gray mold appears on leaves, stems, and buds. Small brown or grey sunken lesions appear on the side or near the base of the bulb.
- What to do
- Avoid overwatering, watering at night, and avoid getting water on the plant when watering. Remove any affected plant parts.
Downy mildew
- What you'll see
- Whitish-grey growth appears on older leaves, turning into yellow discoloration.
- What to do
- Avoid overwatering and overhead watering. Don’t crowd plants to provide proper air circulation. Practice crop rotation.
Sources
Every figure above is backed by these.
- UC Master Gardeners, San Mateo–SF Countiesbacks plantingWindow, startMethod · Foggy & Sunny calendars, Shallot row (from sets/seed): foggy Jan-Feb & Oct-Dec; sunny Jan & Nov-Dec. Start method: Foggy & Sunny calendars, Shallot row: sets planted in place.
- Utah State University Extensionbacks soilDepth, inRowSpacing, rowSpacing, plantingDepth, startMethod · 'How to Grow Shallots in Your Garden' (USU Extension): 'thin to 2-4 inches apart in rows' (in-row spacing); watering 'to a depth of 8-12 inches' plus allium habit = shallow-rooted like onion/garlic/leek. Between-row spacing 12-18 in from the same USU shallot page: 'bulb sets ... in rows 12-18 inches apart'. Planting depth 1-2 in (bulb sets): 'Bulbs should be planted 1-2 inches deep.' Start method: USU Extension shallots: 'Bulbs should be planted 1-2 inches deep' — set straight into the bed.
- Johnny's Selected Seedsbacks daysToMaturity, inRowSpacing · Johnny's Selected Seeds shallot varieties: Ambition 105 days, Conservor 110 days from direct seeding ('subtract 10-15 days if transplants are used', and sets mature sooner) -> ~90-110 days; key-growing info thins to 2-4 in for larger shallots.
- Golden Gate Gardening (Pam Peirce)backs sunlight, lifecycle, harvestStyle · Shallot is a full-sun allium (like onion and garlic); bulbing needs strong light. Habit and harvest: annual, once — from this source's entry for this crop.
- UC Master Gardeners, Sacramento County (Germination)backs germination · Shallot is Allium cepa (aggregatum group) — same species as onion; GN 154 Onion row used as the allium proxy: 32/65–85/95°F.
- Utah State University Extensionbacks germination · USU Extension: shallots grown from bulb sets, planted early spring 'as soon as the ground can be worked' (propagation + cool-soil planting).
- USDA GRIN Taxonomybacks botany
- NC State Extension — Plant Toolboxbacks growthHabit · Allium cepa entry (listed common names include 'Shallot'): Height '1 ft. 0 in. - 1 ft. 6 in.' (12-18 in); Form 'Erect' and 'Arching' — shallot is the aggregatum group of this species with the same upright tubular foliage over the bulb clump, so classified upright.