The Palatinate region, affectionately termed the “Gemüsegarten Pfalz,” has officially launched its 2025 outdoor vegetable season with the harvesting of spring onions. Traditionally, these are the first fresh vegetables from domestic open-field cultivation, signaling the onset of a bountiful season ahead.
Dominance in European Spring Onion Cultivation
With a cultivation area ranging between 2,000 to 2,500 hectares throughout the season, the Palatinate stands as Europe’s unrivaled leader in spring onion production. From March to November, over 350 million bunches of this nutritious superfood are harvested, significantly bolstering Germany’s supply security.
Continuous Harvesting for Optimal Freshness
To ensure that retailers and vegetable enthusiasts nationwide receive super-fresh spring onions, specialized farms in the Gemüsegarten Pfalz are now harvesting daily, from now until autumn, based on orders.
Distinguishing Winter and Summer Varieties
The spring onions currently being harvested were sown in staggered intervals starting from August of the previous year. These are referred to as winter onions, botanically classified as white bulb onions, harvested in spring before they develop a larger bulb. In common parlance, terms like scallions, bunch, spring, or green onions are often used interchangeably. Steffen Sahler, a vegetable gardener and spring onion specialist from Dannstadt, explains, “Few are aware of the difference between winter and summer onions.” He adds, “The summer onions, which we are already sowing for harvest from mid-June in the Gemüsegarten Pfalz, are strictly speaking a cross between leek and onion, which is why winter and summer onions also differ slightly in taste.”
Labor-Intensive Early Harvesting
The early harvest requires meticulous attention and is time-consuming. To facilitate the gentle removal of the entire plant from the soil by hand, the ground is first loosened using a blade. The initial selection occurs during harvesting: tips discolored by the cold winter, as well as the outer leaves, are manually removed. Depending on customer preferences and weight specifications, bundles typically comprising five to eight spring onions are tied directly in the field.
Sustainable Freshness Advantages
Unlike imported goods, primarily sourced from North Africa and transported over thousands of kilometers over several days to Germany, spring onions from the Gemüsegarten Pfalz offer particularly sustainable quality and freshness advantages. Immediately after harvesting, the crisp-fresh bundles are washed on-site, trimmed to the desired marketing length, packed in reusable crates, and then transported directly via refrigerated trucks to wholesale markets and distribution centers of nationwide supermarkets. Steffen Sahler notes, “Typically, the freshly harvested spring onions are on the highway just a few hours after harvest. Overnight, they are available in the vegetable departments and can be purchased at weekly markets.”
Health Benefits of Local Produce
Spring onions from the Palatinate are a genuine superfood. Thanks to short transport routes and unparalleled freshness, they retain particularly high levels of valuable nutrients. Compared to regular onions, spring onions contain more than twice as much vitamin C. They are also rich in secondary plant compounds and dietary fiber, which can have anti-inflammatory effects and positively influence gut health.
Ensuring Supply Security and Consumer Prices
With the start of the Palatinate harvest, the market and price-dominant monopoly position that foreign fresh vegetables from open-field cultivation held over the winter months comes to an end. The availability of the first vegetables from domestic open-field cultivation not only ensures fresher and faster delivery to retailers but also reduces dependency, enhances supply security, and maintains affordable consumer prices throughout the season. Many consumers are unaware that approximately 80% of German spring onion cultivation occurs in the particularly mild climate of the Palatinate, highlighting the unique role and significance of the Gemüsegarten Pfalz as a nationwide “growth cluster” for the sustainable supply of freshly harvested fruits and vegetables in Germany.
The commencement of the spring onion harvest in the Palatinate region not only marks the beginning of Germany’s outdoor vegetable season but also underscores the region’s pivotal role in European agriculture. Through sustainable practices, meticulous cultivation, and a commitment to freshness, the Gemüsegarten Pfalz ensures that consumers nationwide have access to high-quality, nutritious produce.
