Sofire Onion

Be sure to check out our Onion Growing Guide for helpful tips & tricks on how to successfully grow onions in your garden. 

Sofire Onion is an early, short-day red onion. This variety is known for its excellent bolting tolerance and high pink root resistance. It is one of the earliest red onion varieties on the market, ranging from 145-155 days to maturity.

With its strong, vigorous root system and strong, healthy tops, the Sofire onion will produce Grano-shaped bulbs that are uniform in shape having good internal and external coloring.

Sofire Onion can be direct-seeded or transplanted, although we recommend transplanting. For direct-seeding, plant seeds 2″ apart along the row with a row spacing of 24″. Once seedlings emerge, thin seedlings to a 6″ plant spacing along the row. Sofire Onion seeds can be planted with our Hoss Garden Seeder. We recommend using a #1 seed plate and modifying the hole size slightly to accommodate the onion variety being planted. For denser plantings, more holes may need to be drilled to accommodate a thicker spacing.

For transplanting, plant one seed per cell in our heavy-duty seed starting trays. Once the green stems reach 6-8″ in length and/or they can be easily pulled from the seed trays, the transplants are ready to go in the ground. Transplant onions 4-6″ apart along the row with a row spacing of 24″. If drip irrigation is used, onions may be planted on double rows with drip irrigation in the middle. We suggest burying the drip tape 3-4″ deep and planting on both sides of the tape.

Onions are heavy feeders and will require significant nutrient inputs throughout their lifespan. We recommend feeding them with our 20-20-20 and Ammonium Sulfate fertilizers. Fertilize with 20-20-20 shortly after transplanting. The phosphorous and potassium in the 20-20-20 fertilizer will help to promote solid root development, while the nitrogen will promote vegetative growth. Once transplants are established, we recommend side-dressing or injecting with our Ammonium Sulfate fertilizer. Side dress or inject 1 cup per 20 feet of linear row every 3-4 weeks after transplanting.

Sofire Onion Planting Information

Planting Method: transplant

When to Plant: early spring

Planting Depth: 1/4″

Seed Spacing: 4″

Row Spacing: 12-18″

Days to Maturity: 150

Disease Tolerance:

Onion Planting Guide

Select an onion variety based on your geographical location. In many cases, intermediate-day varieties can be grown in southern long-day regions and northern short-day regions.

Short-day Onions

• Plant in fall and overwinter for a spring harvest
• Start the bulbing process when day length reaches 10-12 hours

Intermediate-day Onions

• Plant in late winter for an early summer harvest
• Start the bulbing process when day length reaches 12-14 hours

Long-day Onions

• Plant in spring for a mid-summer harvest
• Start the bulbing process when day length reaches 14-16 hours