Agriculture Report.Onions come in different sizes,shapes, colors and flavors,from mild and sweetto hot and strong.A full-grown onion planthas roots, bulbs and leaves.The leaves are long,thin and hollow.They stand straight up and thickenat the bottom to form a bulb.Onions are biennials;their life cycle is two years long.But they are usually pickedduring their first yearafter flowers formand the bulbs stop growing.Onions grow best in loose,fertile soil.They can growin many different climates.In cooler climates,onions may need fourteento fifteen hours of daylightto start forming bulbs.In warmer climates, onionscan begin developing bulbswith fewer hours of daily sun.Barbara Fick is an extension agentat Oregon State Universityin the northwestern United States.She says a faster wayto grow onions is to plantwhat are called sets.BARBARA FICK: "Well, onion setsare actually small plants,versus starting with a seed.So when you have a set, onion set, it actually is, you know,the small bulb."Organic material like compostor leaf mulch can help onions growin heavy soil.The bulbs can be pulledfrom the ground once their topshave dried and fallen over.Onions can be stored for months.But Barbara Fick says stored onionsneed to be cured first.BARBARA FICK: "Curing is a wayof making sure those leaveson the outside are nice and dry."Here are some directionsfrom editors at the NationalGardening Association.First, dry the onions in the sunfor a day or so.Then bring them out of direct sunfor two to three weeks.Spread them out in any warm,airy place that is covered.Or cover the onionswith a light cotton sheet heldin place with stones along the edge.The sheet will keep the sunfrom burning the bulbs.Don't worry about rain.And do not use a plasticor canvas sheet.Heavy coverings will trap moistureand keep the onionsfrom drying fully.Turn the bulbs a couple of timesto help them dry evenly.After curing the onions,you can hang them indoorsin mesh bags to dry even more.There should be no wet spotson the onionswhen they are put in storage.Editors at the NationalGardening Association saythe longer onions are cured,the better they will keep.Some people cut off the top leavesbefore curing onions.If you do that,do not cut the leaves any closerthan two and a half centimetersfrom the bulb.And that's the VOA Special EnglishAgriculture Report,written by Jerilyn Watson.For more stories about gardening,including more adviceabout growing onions,go to 51voa.com.