Allium
How to grow shallots
Allium cepa (Aggregatum group)
Shallots are grown like onions but are easier, because each set divides into a cluster of bulbs and the crop keeps longer in store. Plant sets 15 to 20 cm apart from mid February to March, in full sun and firm, free-draining soil that has not been freshly manured, with the tips level with the surface. Keep the bed weeded, feed lightly, stop watering once the bulbs swell, and lift when the leaves yellow and fall in July or August.
- Hardiness
- Hardy
- Position
- Full sun
- Soil
- Firm, free-draining
- Ideal pH
- 6.0 to 7.0
- Water
- Low to moderate
- Feeding
- Moderate feeder
Sowing and planting shallots
WhenPlant sets Feb to Mar (or Nov in mild areas); harvest Jul to Aug
Starting off
Plant sets from mid February to March, or November in the mild south-west, into firm, settled soil. Seed types such as 'Matador' are sown in modules in February at 10 to 15 °C, 1 cm deep, germinating in 10 to 14 days, and planted out in April. Re-firm any sets lifted by birds or frost.
Spacing and planting
Sets 15 to 20 cm apart in rows 30 cm apart, pushed in so the tip is level with the soil; each set needs that room because it becomes a cluster of 6 to 10 bulbs. Seed-raised types go at 5 cm for single bulbs. Fine in a 30 cm pot with 3 to 4 sets.
Varieties worth growing
- Golden Gourmet
- Round, yellow-skinned and heavy yielding, with good resistance to bolting and a long storage life. The standard choice.
- Red Sun
- Red-brown skin and pink-tinged white flesh, crisp and mild enough to use raw; keeps well.
- Jermor
- Long French shallot with copper skin and pink flesh, grown for flavour. Sold for both autumn and spring planting.
- Longor
- Long, golden-skinned French type that is milder than Jermor and yields well; easy to peel and slice.
- Zebrune
- Banana shallot raised from seed, not sets, giving one large, long bulb per plant. Sow in modules in February.
Shallots month by month
Timings are for central England. Allow two weeks later in the north and on cold, heavy soil.
- January
Order sets. Check stored bulbs and remove any that are soft.
- February
Plant sets from mid month on light soil. Sow seed-raised varieties in modules.
- March
Main planting month. Re-firm any sets lifted by birds or frost.
- April
Plant out seed-raised shallots. Hand weed; the shallow roots dislike hoeing close in.
- May
One top-dress early in the month. Water only in a prolonged dry spell.
- June
Keep weeding. Snap off any flower stems. Stop watering once the bulbs are swelling.
- July
Lift when the leaves yellow and fall over. Dry on a rack in the sun or under cover.
- August
Lift late varieties. After two weeks of drying, clean and store in nets.
- September
Set aside the best medium-sized, healthy bulbs for replanting.
- October
Nothing to do. Check the store.
- November
Plant autumn varieties in mild areas on well-drained soil, under mesh.
- December
Check stored bulbs.
Feeding shallots
A moderate feeder that wants its food early. Feed the bed before planting and once more in spring; anything after May gives thick necks and bulbs that will not keep.
As onions, a balanced early feed, easing off as the clump bulbs up.
Feeding plan
The autumn before
Garden compost
Dig in for the previous crop or spread it in autumn so it has broken down by planting. No fresh manure in the shallot year.
A week before planting
Fruit & Vegetable Fertiliser 4-5-6
70 g/m² raked in and the bed firmed. With rows 30 cm apart that is about 21 g per metre of row.
Late April to early May, once, when the leaves are 15 cm tall
Fruit & Vegetable Fertiliser 4-5-6
50 g/m², about 15 g per metre of row, scattered between the rows and watered in. Nothing after this.
At planting, pots
Fruit & Vegetable Fertiliser 4-5-6
5 g per litre of compost mixed through: 75 g for a 30 cm pot holding about 15 litres. No further feed is needed.
Signs to watch
Thick green necks and soft clusters
Excess nitrogen or late feeding
One top-dress in May only
Leaves yellowing early and bulbs small
Nitrogen short on light soil
A balanced top-dress at 15 cm high
Bolting flower stems
Sets planted in cold soil or very large sets
Use heat-treated sets and wait until the soil has warmed
Pests, diseases and problems
Leaves yellow and wilt in early summer; the bulb base is covered in white fluffy mould with tiny black dots, and the roots have rotted
Onion white rot, a soil fungus whose resting bodies survive for many years
No cure. Lift and bin affected clusters with the soil around them, do not compost them, clean boots and tools, and stop growing alliums on that ground. Grow future crops in a different bed or in containers of bought compost.
Newly planted sets found lying on the surface
Birds pulling at the dry tips, or frost heaving the soil
Snip off the loose, papery tip before planting, cover the bed with fleece or netting for three weeks until the sets root, and push lifted sets back in.
Leaves turn pale, then develop grey-purple felt and collapse from the tip in a wet summer
Onion downy mildew
Keep the full 15 to 20 cm spacing, weed thoroughly so air moves through, remove affected leaves, and do not store bulbs from infected clusters or replant them.
Rows of white dots on the leaves, which then twist and distort; small brown pupae inside the bulb at lifting
Allium leaf miner, now widespread in central England, with flights in March to April and October to November
Cover with fine insect mesh from planting until the end of May. Autumn-planted shallots need covering from planting to December as well.
Bulbs go soft and brown at the neck in store, with grey mould under the skin
Neck rot, which enters damp, thick necks at harvest
Do not feed after May, let the leaves fall naturally, dry the bulbs for two weeks until the necks are papery, and store only firm, thin-necked bulbs.
Orange pustules on the leaves from midsummer
Leek rust, which also affects shallots, onions and garlic
Usually arrives too late to reduce the crop. Avoid excess nitrogen, keep the spacing, and bin badly affected leaves at harvest.
Harvest and rotation
Harvest and storage
Ready in July to August when the leaves yellow and fall, 18 to 20 weeks from planting. Lift the cluster with a fork, separate the bulbs and dry for 2 weeks on a rack in sun. A set yields 150 to 300 g in 6 to 10 bulbs. Store in nets in a cool, airy place until April; save the best for next year's sets.
Rotation and companions
Rotation: allium group, 3 to 4 year gap, with onions, leeks and garlic. Keep away from peas and beans, whose growth alliums check, and from heavily manured ground, which gives soft bulbs.
Good to knowEach set multiplies into a cluster; plant with the tip just showing and protect from birds tugging them out.
Growing shallots in pots
Shallots suit pots better than onions do, since a few sets give a useful crop. Plant three or four sets in a 30 cm pot (about 15 litres), or seven or eight in a 45 cm one, in peat-free multipurpose compost with a fifth grit added for drainage. Push the sets in to their tips and stand the pot in full sun. Water when the top few centimetres are dry through spring, then stop completely once the leaves begin to yellow, so the bulbs ripen dry. Container growing is also the practical way round onion white rot in the soil. Use fresh compost each year and do not reuse it for any allium.
Shallots: common questions
What is the difference between shallots and onions?
A shallot set divides into a cluster of 6 to 10 small bulbs, while an onion set grows into one large bulb. Shallots are milder and sweeter, are planted slightly wider apart, ripen a few weeks earlier and usually store longer, often until the following April.
Can you plant shallots from the supermarket?
They will usually grow, but it is not a good idea. Shop shallots are not certified free of virus or white rot, some are treated to stop sprouting, and many are seed-raised varieties that do not divide well. Certified sets cost little and are sold from January.
Can you plant shallots in autumn?
Yes, in mild areas on well-drained soil, using varieties sold for autumn planting such as Jermor. Plant in October or November and cover with mesh against allium leaf miner. On cold, heavy or wet ground, sets rot over winter, and planting in February or March is safer.
Sources
Growing information on this page was checked against these references in November 2026. Feeding rates are Dr Forest label rates.