Texas has a long, complex history in onions that began in the late 1800’s. (You can read all the details at this website, if you’re interested.) The skinny? Onions wouldn’t be onions as we know them today without Texas. Although Georgians don’t like to talk about it, their famous Vidalias were originally transplanted there from Carrizo Springs, where they were called Granex. Texas 1015’s, of course, were born here, too. (That’s one, pictured above, that was purchased at the HEB at Hancock shopping center in Austin.) They’re yet another masterpiece of Leonard Pike, the same A&M professor responsible for those maroon carrots. The name 1015 comes from the recommended planting date — October 15 each year. Onions were the first major commercial crop grown in the state and they’re still a huge one, accounting for close to $100 million of cash value from some 17,000 acres.
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A vidalia (Vie day’ lee uh) is incredibly sweet, of course. You can just about eat one like an apple. In Georgia they say it’s the soil, unique locally, that makes them so sweet. I look forward to testing this interesting bit of history. Can a granex be so sweet?
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