GardenBiennial Plant · zones 5–10 · 13 varieties
Shallot
Allium cepa (Aggregatum group)
Amaryllidaceae — the same plant family as onion, garlic, leek, scallion and 1 more here. Relatives share pests and diseases, which is why rotation plans group by family.
Shallot (Allium cepa (Aggregatum group)) is a biennial plant for USDA zones 5–10. It wants full sun and pH 5.5–7.5 soil, with about 1 in of water weekly. It matures in about 100–120 days from sowing, or 85–110 days from setting out a transplant. Watch for aphids and gray mold. Below: its full sourced profile from 5 extension sources, plus a planting calendar timed to your frost dates.
Typical dates for zone 6b — set your zone or ZIP for yours. This calendar assumes the crop is started indoors. Timing is a guide from the crop's sourced growth stages; confirm with your local frost dates and extension before you sow.
What we will not put a number on
We do not give a feeding rate for this crop, and that is deliberate rather than a gap. The figures published by extension services are pounds of nitrogen per acre for a production field — they do not convert safely to a raised bed or a pot without knowing your soil test and your fertilizer's analysis, and guessing errs toward burning roots. It is also why every chart you find online disagrees with the next one.
We give watering as a depth per week rather than gallons per plant, because that is how it is actually measured and how the published figures are written. A gallons-per-plant number depends on your spacing, your soil and whether the plant is in a pot — so it would look more precise than it is.
Site & soil
- Hardiness zones
- 5–10
- Sun
- Full sun
- Soil pH
- 5.5–7.5
- Soil texture
- Loam, Sandy, Well drained
- Frost tolerance
- Hardy
No published figure for the temperature frost starts to hurt it, the temperature that would kill it and a heat limit. We looked — where a number is missing here it is missing from the research, not skipped. The crop’s frost and heat tolerance above still applies.
The plant
- Mature height
- 12–18 in
- Mature spread
- 6–12 in
- Growth rate
- Moderateest
- Spacing in row
- 3–6 in
- Between rows
- 12–18 in
- Planting depth
- 1–2 in
- Container size
- 1–2 gal — low end is the minimum, high end is betterest
- Support
- Self-supportingest
- Grown from
- Sets, Direct sow, Transplant
Water & feeding
- Water needs
- Moderate
- Water per week
- 1 in/wkest
- Critical water
- Bulbingest
- Feeding
- Heavy
Timing & fruiting
- Days to maturity
- 100–120 days from seed · 85–110 days from transplantest
- Harvest cues
- Tops falling over, Skin set
Planted again for autumn
- Set plants out by
- late Jul typical · zone 6b
85 days to maturity from setting a plant out — that is what our sources measure for this crop, so this is a date for planting out and not a sowing date, counted back from the first frost above. Not published for anywhere in particular: it is your own frost date and this crop's own figure, which is why it works wherever you are. A days-to-maturity figure is a catalog number for a good season rather than a promise, and a cold month moves it.
Edible parts per source: bulb, leaf.
Compiled from the extensions cited below. Which ones actually show up depends on your region — your extension's local list is the last word.
Interplanted onions confused carrot rust fly in some trials and did nothing in others. Worth a try, not a bet.
Chart canon, both directions.
Old chart pairing; both hold cool-season beds.
On the classic charts — lettuce's own row lists onions.
Chart canon says onions and garlic make good tomato neighbors. No trials to point at, no conflict either.
The most consistent 'no' in companion planting. Unproven, unanimous.
Same flag as beans — every chart agrees.
Companion pairings from university extensions; badge = how strong the evidence is.
Different parts differ — the edible part is the bulb and leaf; the notes below flag other parts or preparations.
PeopleHemolytic anemia
Petsdogs, cats, horses
Recorded exactly as the source states it — not medical or veterinary advice. If a person or animal may have eaten a toxic part, call Poison Control (1-800-222-1222) or your vet / the ASPCA line (888-426-4435).
| Variety | Type | Days | Color | What it is known for |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ambition F1 | Yellow Brown | 105 | Red | Bejo Seeds describes this askeeps a long time after picking · gives a heavy crop |
| Bonilla F1 | Yellow Brown | 100–105 | Yellow | Cornell Cooperative Extension - Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners records this askeeps a long time after picking |
| Camelot F1 | Round Red | 85–110 | Red | Bejo Seeds describes this asgives a heavy crop |
| Conservor F1 | Yellow Brown | 110 | Red | Bejo Seeds describes this askeeps a long time after picking · gives a heavy crop |
| Dutch Yellow | Yellow Brown | 85–110 | Yellow | |
| French Red | Long Red | 100 | Red | |
| Grey Griselle Heirloom | Grey | 85–110 | Bicolor | Filaree Garlic Farm describes this askeeps a long time after picking · takes the cold |
| Holland Red | Round Red | 85–110 | Red | Cornell Cooperative Extension - Vegetable Varieties for Gardeners records this askeeps a long time after picking |
| Matador F1 | Round Red | 90 | Red | Johnny's Selected Seeds describes this askeeps a long time after picking |
| Picasso | Round Red | 85–110 | Red | Stark Bro's Nurseries describes this askeeps a long time after picking |
| Prisma F1 | Round Red | 100 | Red | |
| Red Sun | Long Red | 80 | Red | |
| Zebrune Heirloom | Long Red | 100 | Red |
- Clemson Cooperative Extension, Home & Garden Information Center
- Johnny's Selected Seeds
- NC State Extension
- University of Maryland Extension
- Utah State University Extension
We compile bare facts from these university-extension and horticultural sources, never copied prose. 14 of the 20 values on this page carry a citation. The rest are marked est; hover one and it says why — either nobody publishes a figure we could point at, or a person set it and attached no source. Figures vary with climate and seed source; confirm with your local extension before you buy.
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