Drought brings challenges for onion growers

Due to the early spring, sowing onions has gone smoothly and is therefore almost complete in the Benelux. In some of the plots, the first rows of plants are even visible. However, it does not happen automatically everywhere and therefore the early spring also has its downside. On various soils, drought is currently a problem, which is causing challenges for onion growers.

Thanks to the favourable weather, the majority of the area had already been sown by the end of March. Several growers indicate that the frost of last winter had done its job well. The soil was easy to work, which had a favourable effect on the sowing conditions. This week and next, the last plots with onions will be sown, De Groot en Slot expect. A big contrast with 2024, when the first sowing moment only arrived in the second week of April due to the wet weather.

Growing season starts (on time)
We are not even halfway through April, and already on some of the plots the rows of onions are clearly visible. The plots that were sown later have also started growing. The difference between primed and unprimed onion seed is also clearly visible, with the primed onion seed having developed a lot further in the same period of time.

Tom Langenberg, account manager at De Groot en Slot, indicates that growers were able to choose their own sowing time thanks to the stable weather. This created peace and good conditions. "The sowing times have varied greatly due to the stable weather. Some have had their onions up for a long time, while others still have to sow. Growers were able to wait for the right moment and decide whether the conditions were right, whether they wanted to irrigate in advance or only do so after sowing, if necessary. There was time for this, which created peace and a start that is generally good."

Drought plays tricks
However, with the current weather conditions, germination and growth are not going smoothly everywhere. Due to the persistent sunny weather, with hardly any precipitation and a lot of wind, the plots are drying out quickly. In various places, the seed is (partially) dry and needs moisture first to get started. In some plots, the drought is leading to two-growth, as Langenberg also notes. "Much of that depends on the soil type and has to do with the moisture hanging. We are not seeing it much yet, but we are seeing two-growth in various plots."

Wilbert Lindhout, commercial promoter in Zeeland and Noord-Brabant, sees that the drought has a major impact on the germination of the seed in his work area. "The weather conditions for sowing were great, but it is drying up fast. In several places, irrigation is used to let the seed germinate (evenly) and grow. Especially on the plots where spring ploughing has taken place or where sowing has taken place later in March, the seed quickly dries out. Unfortunately, not everyone can irrigate because they do not have access to fresh water. There are plots where the seed has partly germinated and partly lies dry, which will cause a two-growth situation, as it seems now."

In order to provide the seed with moisture, sometimes the choice was made to irrigate beforehand instead of after sowing. That also worked out well for growers, and in this way crust formation after sowing is prevented, because with the recent lean weather a large crust could form if irrigation was only done afterwards. However, the EC level is disappointing in some areas.

Sowing is also almost complete in our southern neighbours, says Evert van Crombrugge, account manager of De Groot en Slot in Belgium. He sees that the conditions in the field are almost identical to those in the Netherlands. "In Belgium, the area is almost there and a small part of the growers are sowing just before the precipitation that is expected after the weekend. A lot has been sown in the past week and certainly on the heavier soils, part of the seed has already germinated, but there is also a part that has not done anything yet. That does need precipitation. I expect that this will largely come on time with this weather forecast. This year, on average, the sowing has also been somewhat deeper due to the drought".

Outlook
After the smooth sowing, there is currently a need for a rain shower. Certainly for the plots where irrigation is not possible due to various circumstances and where there is hardly any growth and the seed is dry. This is also favourable for the effectiveness of soil herbicides. With the current weather forecast, this need seems to be met, although nothing is as changeable as the weather.