Being on duty, placing yourself in a row, taking care of your own business, dressing like an onion, that's not your business; so many expressions devoted to a single vegetable confirm that its importance in the diet is not new!
Originating fromWestern asie, onion (Allium cepa) is a bulb cultivated as a vegetable plant for centuries thousands of years.
It was a very important food in the diet of the inhabitants of ancient Egypt the Romans, Greeks and Gallic also very quickly adopted it. In Asia, the shallot type onion remains by far the most popular.
Onion or onion?
In truth, the two spellings are accepted, but traditionalists of the French language resist adopting the spelling corrections proposed in 1990 by the Superior Council of the French Language.
The transition will take place, have no doubt, but slowly, over the generations of students who will learn the modified spelling.
Do you want to save space and ink by removing the i? Go ahead and tell those who accuse you of making mistakes to mind... their own business!
A vegetable celebrated for many centuries
The onion was immediately adopted by Europeans who devoted numerous trade fairs and many of which have resisted the wear and tear of time.
During these fairs, onions of all kinds are displayed and prepared according to local specialties.
Added to this are activities ranging from the festive parade to the knighting of knights of the Order of the Taste-Oignon, including skill competitions and music shows.
- The Tournon-sur-Rhône Onion Fair will be at its 711e edition in August 2020 with more than 1000 exhibitors.
- That of Mantes-la-Jolie, halfway between Rouen and Paris, was in its 570th edition in November 2019.
- In September, an onion fair has also been held in the town of Trun in Normandy since the Middle Ages.
- Many holidays punctuate the calendar in the United States (California, Georgia, Hawaii, New York, Texas, Utah, Washington).
- Canada is not left out with the Purple Onion Festival from Peterborough, Ontario.
- The Weimar Zwiebelfest in Germany has existed since 1653.
- In Catalonia, a popular winter festival features calçoted, a spring onion blanched a bit like leeks.
- Other celebrations take place in the United Kingdom, Italy, and probably elsewhere in the world.
The onion in folklore
The expression " in a row of onions » would come from the zeal shown by Artus de la Fontaine-Solare, Baron d'Ognon and grand master of ceremonies of France under four kings in the 16th century, to creak, tightly packed - like onions in the fields - according to their ceremonial rank, the noble guests of the king in ceremonies, marches and meals.
- It would also find its meaning in the way the onions are braided, starting with the largest and ending with the smallest... as Baron d'Ognon did, in his own way!
Formerly, a small popular musical instrument called doggerel was made from a reed tube pierced with a hole and stopped at its ends with onion skin. The English gave it the nameonion flute.
At a time when dissipated students risked being spanked with a whip made of birch branches, it was believed that in rubbing an onion on said whip, it would break at the first shock.
The Prince of fiddlers, Joseph Allard (1873-1947), recorded the Reel of onions, later taken up by his internationally renowned student, Jean Carignan (1916-1988)!
Romantic disappointments surely inspired the French poet-songwriter Armand Masson (1857 – 1921) to make this melancholy statement, “ Life is an onion that you peel while crying. »
Moderation tastes better
Consumed without excess, onions can have a beneficial effect on health thanks to their actions diuretics, antibacterial et hypoglycemic.
Who hasn't already treated a sore throat or a cold by eating onion?
However, it is the dose that makes the poison and excessive and diligent consumption of raw onion can cause anemia and harm the coagulation some blood.
Forewarned is forearmed!
Culture
The onion likes a site sunny.
Amend the soil of your vegetable garden, regardless of its texture, with a generous quantity of well-decomposed compost, because onions require fertile soil.
At the Jardins de l’écumène, we add fertilizer Bio-Garden when planting small plants in spring to stimulate vegetative growth.
- Le abundant foliage generates more photosynthesis which contributes to the development of the bulb towards the end of June.
At the end of the season, when 50% of the foliage has collapsed, we lay the rest of the foliage on the ground to expose the bulbs in full sun and activate their maturation.
During the growth period, a hoeing Regularly prevents weeds from taking hold, but be careful not to damage the bulb during this operation.
Also, the application of mulch at the base of the plants helps keep the soil cooler and slows down the proliferation of weeds.
A valuable spray is necessary when planting small plants and during periods of prolonged drought. Its water requirements decrease during the period of bulb maturation.
Rotation and companion plants
The onion forms beautiful alliances with the beet, the carrot, kohlrabi,spinach, cabbage in all its forms, strawberry, hub, parsnip, the lettuce, p and tomato. .
On the other hand, it would not appreciate the company of beans, asparagus, peas and sage.
It is recommended to plant it after cucurbits because of the soil already enriched with compost for this crop, but never after another plant in the onion family or a legume.
Harvesting and storage
Use delicacy when uprooting, then let the harvested onions dry in the sun for a few days: check the weather forecast before proceeding!
When the outer skin of the bulbs and the stems themselves are dry et wrinkled, the stems are cut above the collar.
The bulbs are then returned inside and placed on trellises in a well-ventilated area for another two to three weeks before being bagged in jute or woven nylon bags.
Winter storage requires a location cool and dry.
Conservation
Not all varieties of onions keep as well as each other.
- Onions grown from onions keep less well than if sown.
General rule, theyellow onion wins the prize for the most efficient during storage and variety Yellow of Parma is among the best in its category.
The red onions keep less well than the yolks, but the Rossa di Milano stands out from its peers in this regard.
The shelf life of white onions and very sweet varieties is very short; These are onions that are eaten immediately after harvest.
