Crop type: Shallots
Allium cepa (Aggregatum Group) ‘Longor’ PBR
Common name: Shallot ‘Longor’
Crop slug: shallots
This Allotment Pro editorial draft summarises the cited RHS cultivar profile and its linked crop guidance. Check the sources and adjust cultivation decisions for local conditions.RHS cultivar profile
1 - Overview
‘Longor’ is an elongated French banana shallot with purple-brown outer skin and pink flesh. Long, strappy grey-green leaves rise above the bulb cluster, and each planted set can produce up to eight shallots. The crop stores well and may be harvested from summer into autumn.
Under suitable conditions it reaches harvest in about 90 days, once the foliage turns yellow and flops. Its narrow elongated form clearly distinguishes it from rounded and teardrop shallots.
2 - Size
- Ultimate height
- 0.1–0.5 metres
- Ultimate spread
- 0–0.1 metre
- Time to ultimate size
- One year
- Habit
- Clump forming
The plant is upright and narrowly clustered. Allow the parent guide’s full spacing so several long daughter bulbs can develop around each set.
3 - Growing conditions
- Suitable soils
- Chalk, clay, loam or sand
- Moisture
- Well drained
- Soil pH
- Neutral
Use fertile soil that drains freely. Maintain enough moisture during early leaf and bulb growth, but do not keep ripening bulbs wet. Containers are suitable where the garden soil is heavy or damp.
4 - Position and hardiness
- Light
- Full sun
- Aspect
- South- or west-facing
- Exposure
- Sheltered
- Hardiness
- H3 — best suited to coastal and relatively mild parts of the UK
A sunny sheltered position supports rapid ripening and the strongest skin colour. In colder districts, favour spring planting or a protected container rather than exposing sets to severe winter conditions.
5 - Colour and seasonal interest
| Season | Flowers | Foliage | Bulbs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | — | Grey-green | Developing |
| Summer | — | Grey-green, then yellowing | Purple-brown skin, pink flesh |
| Autumn | — | Deciduous | Purple-brown skin |
| Winter | — | — | Stored crop |
The distinctive harvest consists of long banana-shaped bulbs wrapped in muted purple-brown skins. A cut bulb reveals warm pink flesh, while the growing crop has long grey-green strap-like leaves.
6 - Botanical details
- Family
- Amaryllidaceae
- Native to Great Britain and Ireland
- No
- Foliage
- Deciduous
- Habit
- Clump forming
- Name status
- Accepted
- Plant Breeders’ Rights
- Yes
- RHS recognition
- Award of Garden Merit
Genus
Allium includes bulbous herbaceous perennials with a strong onion or garlic scent. They characteristically have linear, strap-shaped or cylindrical basal leaves and star- or bell-shaped flowers in umbels on leafless stems.
Safety
Alliums can be harmful to dogs and cats if eaten. Keep bulbs, foliage and kitchen or garden trimmings away from pets.
7 - How to grow
Cultivation
Grow in fertile, well-drained soil in full sun, or use a large container. Plant sets at the spacing in the parent crop guide, keep them weed-free and water through active growth. The crop can be ready in about 90 days; lift once foliage yellows and flops, then dry thoroughly before storing.
Propagation
Propagate from seed or onion sets.
Suggested locations
- Patio container
- Low-maintenance edible bed
- Flower border or bed
- Allotment or kitchen garden
Pruning
Deadheading may be required if a flower stalk forms. Do not cut or force down healthy foliage before it ripens naturally.
Pests
May be susceptible to onion fly, allium leaf miner and leek moth. Inspect foliage and bulbs regularly and use fine-mesh protection where these pests are active.
Diseases
May be susceptible to onion downy mildew and onion white rot. Maintain spacing and drainage, avoid wet leaves and rotate allium crops.