Did you know that Kelso had it’s very own onion variety?

Known as the Kelsae Onion, it was bred in the 1940’s by Alfred Breed senior at Mertoun Gardens near St Boswells and then passed on to his son Alfred Breed junior (known as Alfie) in the 1970’s. Alfie sold it on to Sinclair McGills of Kelso (now known as Mayfield Garden Centre) who in turn sold it on to a branch of Mr Fothergills seeds who raised the seed at a location in Italy.

Crop failures in Italy over recent years has put the future of the seed into jeopardy, but thanks to local enthusiasts, the original strain of the seed has been kept going. Bert Duncan, who ran Newton Don Nursery for 28 years, is one of these growers, and thanks to him and other like-minded vegetable gardeners we have managed to get enough seed to produce plants for sale here at Woodside.

Exhibition Type Onion

It is a very large exhibition type onion, and enjoys slightly damper conditions than most onions so is ideal for our area. The large onions don’t always have the best of flavour, but can still be used in the kitchen once you’ve won your prize for the biggest onion at the Kelso Flower Show!

Where To Buy

If you fancy giving it a try you’ll need to reserve your plants in good time, as stocks are limited and always sell out quickly. Plants are usually ready in April for planting out in the garden then. For information of how to grow them, check our guide

Phone us on 01835 830315 to reserve plants.