When did you sow them? Onions are very, very slow.

60 days ago from seed.

Not sure where you are but you should plant them earlier. Onions will grow, but grow better in cooler weather, not July heat. Heat and summer solstice change how onions grow. They also might grow faster if spread out, but they can be grown in clumps.

You can pull those onions out and replant them properly spaced. Just tease them apart, don't worry about the root ball, they will grow much better. But wait for the weather to cool off a little. I have grown green onions from seed for the fall before... it works ok for me.

I purposely planted them in "clumps". I read somewhere that you can put 8 seeds in each spot to naturally create a "bunch". bad idea?

I haven't grown them to maturity that way... I'm sure you can, but I imagine that the only benefit is saving space.

Peter... plants scallion seeds now? If the seedlings do well in the heat you could have them to pick end of Sept and Oct, sounds like a good idea.

Hmm? Yes, I have grown scallions from seed planted now. But a lot would depend on the variety and weather. They probably will be on the small side, harvested in November.

I have scallions (bunching onions) that I started indoors May 21 to be planted out in early August at 10 weeks old. As long as they don't burn up in the summer heat, I expect to begin harvesting by mid September. I will rig up some shade for them for a couple weeks.

That reminds me...I need to start hardening them off this weekend.

You shouldn't "create" a bunch. Some onions are naturally bunching onions...you plant one and more will grow around it. If you "bunch" a non bunching onion, it will just stunt it's growth.

White Lisbon will never make a bulb...it is just not that type of onion. You have them planted way too closely for them to get any size on them. You either need to dig and space them out now, or pull and eat.

Eliot Coleman regularly plants green onions in bunches. Probably why they're called bunching onions. His primary reason is that it saves him time, and in a commercial operation that's a big deal.

From tomatoville forum...this was discussed....

"It's from his book The New Organic Grower which was first published some years ago, but contains a wealth of excellent information. Here's the onion quote:

The concept of the multiplant block is based on spatial rather than
linear plant distance in the field. For example, say the average ideal
in onion spacing is one plant every 3 inches in rows spaced 12 inches
apart. Mutiplants aim at an equivalent spacing of four or five onions
per square foot. The difference is that all four onions are started
together in one block and grow together until harvest....The onions grow
normally in the clump, gently pushing each other aside, attaining a
nice round bulb shape and good size.

"blocks" in this context are soil blocks - compressed soil used instead
of pots for seed starting through transplant. He also plants scallions
12 per block and harvests them as a bunch. I like that idea, too.
There's time savings on seed starting, transplanting, harvesting and,
especially, weeding, since you can easily cultivate between the widely
spaced clumps."

These are planted in blocks, with appropriate spacing and he transplants the entire block at once..they still are spaced appropriately...he still spaces them...just plants entire tray at once...stir has hers planted right on top of each other..I say again..they will never size up that way..she either needs to thin them or dig and replant them spaced farther apart.

My green onions only grew a little bit and stopped growing I do not know what is happening. Too hot? Too cold? Not enough water? It is confusing.

Bunching onions do not bulb or get large like a leek, Fat pencil is the usual size. They need a lot of nitrogen as do all onions. N is usually the difference.