Description of the Radar onion variety

Onion

Planting the mid-season winter onion variety Radar yields a bountiful harvest as early as mid-June, nine months after sowing. Some onions grow to over half a kilogram in weight. The variety's description and its beneficial and practical properties have led to its popularity. According to gardeners, planting and care are relatively straightforward, and the results are always pleasing.

Brief description

Experienced growers describe the Radar variety with favorable reviews of its taste, appearance, and robust immunity, as well as its ease of planting and care.

Fact!

Its flavor is particularly appealing. The Radar onion, bred by Dutch breeders, lacks a harsh aftertaste and is considered a semi-sharp variety. These varieties are easy to use in any dish, including salads, and can be added to the vegetable preserves that thrifty housewives invariably make for the winter.

Cultivation of this variety began much earlier, but it was only 13 years ago that the Dutch originators' produce was added to the Russian State Register and became an officially registered variety, now grown on an industrial scale. In the Russian Federation, this medicinal root vegetable, with its distinctive, pungent flavor, is popular in appetizers, first and second courses, and as a folk remedy for various ailments, and this is no coincidence.

The demand for Radar onions becomes clear when the variety description lists its beneficial components—a rich array of vitamins, phytoncides, essential oils, plant-based proteins, beneficial microelements, minerals, and sugars.

Planting and caring for the plant in the winter offers the potential to provide a vegetable that helps remove excess cholesterol from the body and has pronounced anti-inflammatory properties. The healing properties of onions, as mentioned in the variety description, help prevent metabolic disorders and gastrointestinal diseases.

Reviews of the variety

Lyudmila Ivanovna Mateshko, 61 years old. Voronezh:

"I've been a gardener for 20 years. I've been working at my dacha for a good ten years now, and not just for my own consumption—I also give surplus harvests to my children and relatives. I'm drawn to the Radar variety because it offers fresh greens in May (it tolerates cutting well), packed with essential vitamins. Moreover, planting and care, unlike more demanding varieties, are completely hassle-free."

Igor Evgenievich Sakharov, 54 years old. Saratov region:

"I grow Radar for sale—a profitable venture. However, I've never managed to reach the maximum yield stated in the variety description. It says someone was lucky enough to harvest 374 centners per hectare. My yields are average—a little less or more than two hundred centners per hectare."

Inga Efimovna Stefan, 38 years old. Odessa region:

"I'm a simple gardener. I love Radar for its virtues: productivity, climate adaptability, and excellent germination. For several years now, I've been planting it in the fall—in the spring, it produces a beautiful green stalk for salads, a good harvest, and it can be stored for a long time."

Churilin Petr Semenovich, 43 years old. Bryansk region:

"The most important requirement is high-quality sets, free from any damage or blemishes. You won't get a good harvest from poor-quality seeds. I always dry the sets in a warm place, disinfect them with a saline solution, and then with potassium permanganate. And one more thing: if you don't dig the soil, disinfect it, and fertilize it properly, you can't count on good germination or a good harvest."

The main characteristics that are indicated in the description of the Radar variety

The shape of the onion root is usually described as flattened or ellipsoidal: it truly differs from the usual round shape. The onion head is covered with tightly fitting golden scales, which make peeling somewhat difficult, but this feature allows it to retain its inherent juiciness for a long time and maintain its marketable appearance during transportation.

Important!

The frost resistance of the winter crop is another reason for the popularity of the Radar variety.

Even in a virtually snowless winter, onions can survive temperatures as low as -15°C. And if nature has blessed them with snow, they can withstand temperatures as low as -25°C. The variety's resilience is believed to stem from the tightly adherent husks and their protective properties. However, experienced gardeners believe that only proper planting and winter care can ensure a full June harvest, ranging from 160 to 250 centners per hectare.

The average weight of a bulb is up to 100 g; with good agricultural practices and proper planting spacing, it can vary from 150 to 300 g, although record-sized specimens can reach 500 g.

The Russian State Register recommends Radar for cultivation in the North Caucasus region, but gardeners also grow it in areas with harsher climates. This is possible thanks to the variety's strong immunity and high frost resistance, which its Dutch breeders imbued into the variety.

For reference!

This onion variety is grown from high-quality sets, at least a centimeter in diameter. It's possible to grow seedlings from seeds, but this is more labor-intensive, so the direct-seeding method is usually preferred.

Planting and care

The Radar variety has no special requirements for soil composition or acidity, and this is its undeniable advantage. The soil simply needs to be cleared and dug, followed by fertilization. Humus, superphosphate, and wood ash are excellent for this purpose, although some consider adding potassium salt as well.

After digging, fertilizing, and disinfecting the soil, the planting process begins. Timing varies depending on location and climate. Radar is planted from early October to early November in different regions, but the planting procedure remains the same:

the beds with future onions are spaced at a distance of 20 to 30 cm, otherwise close proximity will not allow the root crop to develop;
seed furrows should be at least 4 cm deep to protect against frost;
Large sets are planted at a distance of a matchbox from each other and deepened by 3 cm; for smaller ones, the depth and distance can be reduced;
At the end of the process, the seeds are covered with soil and mulched with available materials - humus, pine branches or straw.

Advice!

Some sources recommend using fallen leaves, but this is incorrect. Rotting leaves can harbor garden pests, so it's best to burn them.

A successful harvest depends largely on timely watering, which begins in early to mid-May, always using warm water, fertilizing at the right time, spraying the crops with a saline solution, and dusting with wood ash. These measures help prevent pests and diseases to which Radar has no immunity. The gardener's efforts will be rewarded with excellent dark green bulbs and strong, golden-hued bulbs.