Crops › Shallot
How to grow Shallot
in the UK
Sow February to March, plant out April to June, harvest July to August. About 140 days from seed to plate.
Shallots, they're part of the onion family, you know, but a bit more refined, a bit sweeter. Proper easy to grow, even for beginners, and they don't take up much space on the allotment. You'll be chuffed with the flavour they bring to your cooking, honestly.
Sowing
You've got a couple of options with shallots. If you're keen, you can sow the seeds indoors in February or March. Just pop 'em about 1 cm deep in some seed compost, a few seeds per small pot, then thin to the strongest. Keep 'em warm on a windowsill or in a cold frame. Or, like I often do, you can plant shallot sets directly outside from March onwards, once the worst of the cold weather has passed. Push 'em into the soil so just the tip is showing, about 15 cm apart in rows.
Growing on
Once your indoor seedlings are big enough to handle, prick 'em out gently into individual pots. When they're a bit tougher, you need to harden them off for a week or two outside before planting them out on the plot after the last frost, which is usually mid to late May up here. Space them about 15 cm apart, same as sets, with 30 cm between your rows. They don't need any special support, just let 'em get on with it.
Looking after it
Shallots are pretty low maintenance, to be honest. Keep the area around them clear of weeds, as they don't like competing for nutrients and water. Give them a good drink if it's been particularly dry, especially when they're bulking up. They don't usually need much feeding if your soil's decent, but a bit of balanced liquid feed won't hurt if they look a bit sad.
What goes wrong
Now, like their onion cousins, shallots can sometimes get bothered by onion fly, which can damage the bulbs. And there's white rot, which is a fungal disease that can be a real pain. The best thing you can do is keep your plot clean, proper good crop rotation, and avoid planting alliums in the same spot for at least three years. It helps, you know.
Harvest
You'll be harvesting your cracking shallots in July or August, usually about 140 days after sowing or planting. You'll know they're ready when the foliage starts to yellow and die back, kinda flopping over. Gently lift them out of the ground with a fork, being careful not to damage the bulbs. Then, lay them out somewhere warm and dry, like in a greenhouse or shed, for a couple of weeks to 'cure' before storing.
A good tip for sets is to nip the tops off any that look like they're trying to bolt early, it often helps them put their energy into the bulbs instead.
Dates for your plot
Type the first half of your postcode and the plant-out advice shifts to your area's typical frost dates.
Varieties, and whether the club would grow them again
| Variety | Club verdict |
|---|---|
| Red Sun This is a cracking red-skinned variety. You'll be chuffed with how well it keeps through the winter months. | No club votes yet |
| Golden Gourmet A proper golden brown shallot, ideal for all your cooking needs. It's a real workhorse in the kitchen, like I say. | No club votes yet |
| Jermor If you're after shallots that last, Jermor is your go-to. It's known for being a cracking long keeper, perfect for the larder. | No club votes yet |
| Longor This is a lovely elongated French type, a bit different to your usual round ones. It's got a proper heritage feel and a fine taste. | No club votes yet |
| Pikant Pikant, like its name suggests, gives you a strong, robust flavour. If you want a shallot that stands out in your cooking, this is the one. | No club votes yet |
| Echalote Grise A classic grey French shallot, proper gourmet stuff for the connoisseur. It's a bit special, with a delicate flavour for your fancier dishes. | No club votes yet |
| Ambition F1 Ambition is a reliable F1 type, known for being bolt-resistant, which is always a bonus up here. It gives you nice round, uniform shallots, year after year. | No club votes yet |
| Pikant Pikant, like its name suggests, gives you a strong, robust flavour. If you want a shallot that stands out in your cooking, this is the one. | No club votes yet |
| Matador F1 Matador F1 is a proper red shallot, perfect for storing away for winter. It's a reliable choice for a good harvest and keeps well, to be honest. | No club votes yet |
| Creation F1 If you're after a cracking big crop, Creation F1 is definitely one to consider. It gives you lovely large, round shallots and plenty of them. | No club votes yet |
| Echalote Grise A classic grey French shallot, proper gourmet stuff for the connoisseur. It's a bit special, with a delicate flavour for your fancier dishes. | No club votes yet |
| Delvad Delvad is a solid maincrop choice, giving you large, round brown shallots. It's a good all-rounder for the plot and the kitchen. | No club votes yet |
| Atlantic Atlantic gives you lovely golden, uniform shallots, making for a neat crop. It's a reliable maincrop variety that performs well on the plot. | No club votes yet |
| Prisma Prisma is a cracking red banana shallot, a bit different in shape and colour. It's a good maincrop for something a bit distinctive on your plate. | No club votes yet |
| Meloine Meloine is a beautiful long French pink shallot, with that proper heritage charm. It'll look grand on your plate and tastes just as good. | No club votes yet |
Votes are members rating varieties in their Seed Tin, one vote per gardener. Tap a variety for the full page and where to buy.
Buy Shallot seeds
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Cook the harvest
This is the Lebanese lentil and rice dish that converts everyone who tries it. The crispy shallots aren't a garnish here — they're cooked down in generous quantities until deeply golden and jammy, then fried until shatteringly crisp and piled on top. Cumin and allspice do the heavy lifting on flavour, and the whole thing comes together in one pan.
70 min · mediumMacerated shallots form the backbone of the dressing in this summer bread salad, their juices melding with red wine vinegar and good olive oil into something far more complex than a standard vinaigrette. The shallots soften and sweeten as they sit, weaving through ripe tomatoes and torn sourdough that absorbs every drop. This is a salad that gets better as it rests, making it ideal for summer lunches and garden tables.
30 min · easyA proper weeknight pasta that leans entirely on a tangle of soft, sweet shallots melted down with Italian-style sausage and a generous slug of white wine. The shallots dissolve into the sauce and give it a silky, almost luxurious body without a drop of cream. It takes less than 30 minutes and tastes far more considered than the effort involved.
30 min · easyShallots have a sweeter, more delicate flavour than onions, which makes them absolutely magnificent in a soup like this. Slow-caramelised until deeply golden, they form a rich, glossy broth that is more refined than the classic version. Finished with cheesy toasts floated on top, this is a bowl that genuinely earns its place on the table.
75 min · mediumWatch for, and grow alongside
Companions: strawberries, tomatoes
Questions people ask
When do you sow Shallot in the UK?
Sow Shallot from February to March. Plant out April to June, after the last frost.
How long does Shallot take from sowing to harvest?
Roughly 140 days, with the harvest July to August.
Which Shallot varieties do gardeners grow again?
Club members rate every variety they grow. This page shows the grow-again votes for Red Sun, Golden Gourmet, Jermor, Longor and more.
Track your Shallot from packet to plate
Sowing reminders and harvest forecasts for your own frost dates, the Seed Tin, Scan Centre for any label or packet, and the Potty Mouth Garden Club. Free to start.
Allotment keeper in the North East of England, the voice behind the Tony C Smith YouTube channel, and the gardener who built GrowMore CookMore. Club numbers on this page update as members log their plots. Last updated 3 September 2026.