Walking onions reproduce asexually through a unique method involving bulbils. Instead of producing flowers and seeds, they develop clusters of tiny bulbs, called topsets, at the top of their stalks.
Understanding Topsets
- Bulbils Instead of Flowers: The walking onion's topsets are essentially small onions that form at the location where a flower would typically develop. The reference indicates this: "Instead of flowers, this plant produces topsets, a cluster of bulbils, at the top of the stalk where the flowers and seeds would normally be."
- Weight-Driven Propagation: As these bulbils grow, they become heavier. The weight of these bulbils causes the onion stalk to bend over towards the ground.
- Replanting: When the topset-laden stalk touches the soil, the bulbils take root and grow into new walking onion plants.
- "Walking" Across the Ground: This process of bending and replanting gives the walking onion its name, as it appears to "walk" across the ground over time. The reference also says that the stalks "eventually flop over from the weight of the bulbils (if not harvested) and replant themselves, thus beginning their 'walk' across the ground."
The Reproductive Cycle Summarized
| Step | Description |
|---|---|
| 1 | Walking onions produce topsets (clusters of bulbils) at the top of their stalk instead of flowers. |
| 2 | The bulbils grow and increase in weight. |
| 3 | The weight of the bulbils causes the stalk to bend towards the ground. |
| 4 | Bulbils that come into contact with the soil take root. |
| 5 | New walking onion plants grow from the rooted bulbils, starting the cycle again. |
Practical Insights
- Easy Propagation: This unique reproductive method makes walking onions very easy to propagate.
- No Need for Seeds: They do not require seed planting.
- Garden Expansion: The "walking" nature of this onion makes it capable of naturally expanding in your garden.
- Harvesting bulbils You can harvest the topsets (bulbils) before they fall to plant where you like, or to eat.
