Sep 15, 2020

Crookham’s long day onion trial highlighted during field day

Processing onions are down due to the pandemic, and Crookham Co. highlighted the agility of its hybrids to be grown for both fresh and processing markets.

The trial was in great shape and the 2020 growing season has been favorable for onions in the Treasure Valley, Idaho. It was a fun day to connect with our dealer partners and the local growers to exchange information. The entries consisted of the entire long day onion lineup of reds, whites and yellows from Crookham along with two mainstay yellow intermediate onions Avalon and Scout.

Grower optimism is high for the upcoming season as the onions are finishing up and maturing into a high-quality good storage product. The event took place on the Crookham farm in Wilder.  Plant date for the trial was March 17, 2020.

This was Crookham’s fifth year of the annual trial. The main long day yellow segment of Trident, Caldwell and Caliber continue to experience tremendous growth among growers in the Western U.S. Caldwell has a distinct advantage over the competitors as its ring separation is superior to all other genetics in the processing segment. Caliber and Trident excel with single centers and long-term storage. The fact that all these yellow varieties are multiple use whether going to process or retail makes this lineup very versatile.

The white onions were also a focal point with the lineup having an early long day with White Cloud along with a main season White Cap, and a later maturing Brundage. All have excellent uniformity with bright white color and can fill an entire program for the entire season.

The three long day reds that were shown have great internal color and a strong tolerance to Pink Root and Fusarium. All matured earlier than the current main season commercial hybrids.

We were proud to have our dealer partners in attendance and thank them for their continued commitment to Crookham Co. 

– Lyndon Johnson, Crookham Co.