Shallot Rouge long de Florence - Allium cepa

The 'Rouge long de Florence' Onion is an old Italian variety selected around Florence in Tuscany and now highly prized in amateur vegetable gardens. Its tapered bulbs, reddish-purple on the outside, contain white flesh delicately tinged with pink, with a mild and sweet flavour, somewhere between onion and shallot. This mid-early variety produces onions perfect for salads, sliced on open sandwiches, or grilled whole on the barbecue.

The Rouge long de Florence Onion belongs to the Amaryllidaceae family and the species Allium cepa. This species is thought to originate from Central Asia, probably around Turkmenistan, and is now cultivated worldwide. It is biennial: in the first year, the plant forms the bulb and foliage; in the second, a flower stalk bearing an umbel of small white to greenish, very melliferous flowers, followed by capsules containing angular black seeds.
The cultivar 'Rouge long de Florence' is also sold under the names 'Rossa lunga di Firenze' or 'Rouge long doux de Florence'.
Its growth is fairly rapid: sown in late winter or very early spring, it is harvested as fresh onions during the summer, then at full ripeness from late summer to early autumn. Each plant develops a single, spindle-shaped bulb, 12 to 20 cm long and 4 to 7 cm in diameter, sometimes very large in rich soil. The seeds are reproducible, so you can harvest your own seeds from a few plants left to flower and resow them from year to year.

The onion is a plant cultivated as a vegetable and a condiment. It is consumed raw, cooked, or pickled. Its bulb, rich in sulphur compounds, causes tears as soon as it is sliced. Among other properties, onion is reputed to be diuretic, useful for reducing cholesterol levels in the blood and lowering blood pressure. Rich in vitamins A, B, C and minerals, it is often more digestible when cooked and takes on a sweeter flavour.

The harvest: You can start pulling up a few bulbs as soon as they have reached a good elongated size and the tunic takes on a reddish-purple hue, even if the leaves are still quite green. For a harvest intended for some storage, wait until the majority of the stems have flopped over and begun to yellow. Preferably choose two to three consecutive days of fine weather, gently lift the bulbs and leave them to dry in the sun, directly on the soil, for two to three days. Then, gently brush off the dry soil without damaging the skin.

Storage: The Rouge long de Florence keeps for less time than the large yellow storage varieties. If the condition of the stems allows, you can braid the onions and hang the bunches in a dark, cool, dry, and well-ventilated place. Otherwise, arrange them on racks or crates, in a single layer. Discard any bruised or damaged bulbs, as they risk causing the others to rot. It is best to consume them in the months following the harvest, prioritising first the onions that are less well dried.

The gardener's little tip: Like all onions, Rouge long de Florence appreciates the proximity of carrots. The two crops protect each other: the onion limits carrot fly attacks and the carrot moderates those of the onion fly. It also thrives between rows of beetroot, strawberry plants, or lettuces. On the other hand, avoid planting it very close to broad beans, peas, and beans.