Edible Bulbs, Tubers & Crowns

Grow Your Own Edible Bulbs, Tubers & Crowns

Choose from onions, shallots, garlic, potatoes, bulb fennel, asparagus and rhubarb. Available seasonally, these tasty bulbs, tubers and crowns can be planted in the ground or grown in container gardens.

Edible bulbs can be planted on their own or with pansies and violas as a cover crop until your bulbs start growing and begin peeking out.

Currently available while supplies last: Potato tubers, garlic sets, and onions

Not yet available: Asparagus, bulb fennel, rhubarb, shallots, and sweet potato tubers

Nothing More Powerful Than An Onion

Limited Availability - While Supplies Last!

All of the onion varieties below vary slightly in flavor, texture, and color. Although their subtle differences in flavor are appreciated by sophisticaed pallets, they can usually be substituted for one another if necessary. In terms of cooking, they will all behave the same in the pan!

We typically carry the following onion varieties, available seasonally while supplies last:

Red Onions

As the name suggests, red onions have a deep purple-red skin and a white to deep red flesh. They have a sharp and slightly spicy flavor with a hint of sweetness. Red onions are commonly used raw in salads, sandwiches, and as a garnish for tacos and other dishes. Their vibrant color adds visual appeal to a variety of dishes, and their flavor can add a zesty kick to your culinary creations.
Yellow Onions
Yellow onions are the most common and widely used variety of onions. They have a golden-brown papery skin and a white to pale yellow flesh. Yellow onions have a strong and pungent flavor when raw, but they mellow and develop a sweet, savory taste when cooked. This versatile variety is often used as a base in many savory dishes, such as soups, stews, and sautés.
White Onions

White onions have a crisp, white skin and a mild, slightly sweet flavor. They have a more delicate taste compared to yellow onions and are often used in Mexican and other cuisines where a milder onion flavor is desired. White onions work well in fresh salsas, salads, and as a topping for burgers and sandwiches. They are also used in pickling due to their mildness.

Shall We Plant Shallots?

Not Currently Available

Where would be without shallots? They're often seen in French cuisine, where they're featured in classic sauces such as mignonette. They're also indispensable to Asian dishes—often crisp-fried or ground into curry pastes. Milder in flavor than red onions, but more assertive than yellow, with a hint of garlic flavor. Uses: Thinly sliced and fried for topping Thai curried noodles, congee, or deviled eggs; minced into basic vinaigrettes for added crunch and flavor. You'll need shallots to make the Ultimate Thanksgiving Green Bean Casserole, and we love them roasted under a whole chicken.

6 images: Rhubarb; onions, shallots and scallions; garlic; potatoes; and bulb fennel

Ahhh Garlic!

Available Now - While Supplies Last!

Garlic adds a fresh pop of flavor that can be used in a number of ways—from fresh roasted whole garlic cloves, to dried in dressings, salsas and butters, to fresh minced as part of the base for sauces, casseroles, soups and more... It's a household staple for every level of chef!

Stop in to SummerWinds for these tasty varieties: California Softneck, and Elephant

A gardeners favorite, richly flavored light-to medium pungency garlic that has a lot of color and grows almost anywhere. It retains its sweet aroma even after cooking. And when properly grown and stored will keep through the winter.

Home-Grown Potatoes

Potato Varieties Available While Supplies Last

Enjoy the fresh flavor of home-grown potatoes with tubers from your local SummerWinds Nursery.

California White
French Fingerling
German Butterball
Huckleberry Gold
Purple Majesty
Dark Red Norland
Russet Burbank

Note: Sweet potatoes are not currently available.

Planting Potatoes

Cut the potatoes into chunks, with at least two "eyes" (buds) per piece. Dig a planting trench 6 inches deep, fill the trench with 3 inches of compost, and place the seed potatoes in the trench cut side down, 6 to 8 inches apart. And finally, shovel 3 more inches of compost on top for form a hill.

Increase Your Yield

The hills you form on your potatoes will ultimately increase your yield. Potatoes will form along the underground stem of the plant, and when you hill them, they will effectively lengthen the underground portion of the stem. You can either add additional soil to the bed and then mold it around the plants, or you can scoop up soil from the rows and press it against the stems. Later in the season, it's easy to reach in and check the potatoes for size before you harvest them.

Harvest Time!

No need to wait until the end of the gardening season to harvest potatoes. If your potato plants are large and the plants are flowering, you may be able to harvest "new" potatoes. New potatoes are thin skinned and sweet. You can check the hills and feel around for potatoes, then either harvest them up individually or uproot the entire plant. You can use new potatoes right away, or store them.

Want More?

To learn more about growing potatoes, check out this YouTube video , or this article, from Growing in the Garden.