Time to plant garlic

Garlic is a member of the allium family, which includes leeks, shallots and onions. There are many varieties of garlic, all of which fall into three general categories: Softneck, Hardneck and Elephant. Softneck garlic is the kind you will generally find in the grocery store. The two common types of softneck garlic are artichoke and silverskin.

Artichoke garlic generally stores well and has a mild flavor, such as California White, Inchelium Red,  Susanville and Polish White. Nootka Rose is a silverskin garlic with a very strong flavor.  Softneck garlics have a flexible stalk which can be braided.

Hardneck garlics also have a stalk –called a scape- which coils at the top. If left to mature, hardnecks will produce a flower which is actually a number of small bubils, or tiny bulbs, which are edible. Hardnecks dry to a hard stem, hence the name. The most common Hardneck garlic is rocambole. As a group, they have a deeper, richer flavor than softnecks do, but they don’t store as well. Select Siberian Red for long lasting, strong flavor. Elephant garlic is the largest garlic. It is also the mildest and sweetest. It is easy to peel and has a long shelf life.

Garlic is typically planted in October. Start with a good, quality bulb. Garlic purchased in grocery stores is often treated with sprout inhibitors, disrupting the growth cycle.

Break the bulb, called “cracking” into individual cloves.

These are the garlic “seeds”. Each clove or seed will produce its own plant, containing 6-8 cloves per bulb.

Garlic likes sun and well-drained soils, so incorporate a good soil amendment such as Sheep, Peat and Compost into your planting. This soil amendment is produced locally.

Add some Bone Meal to the planting site, to encourage rooting. Garlic is a very friendly plant and grows well planted with other flowers and vegetables in the garden as well as in the perennial bed.

Plant each clove about 2” deep, pointy end up and spaced about 5" to 6” apart. Like other spring flowering bulbs, garlic planted now will set roots and start to grow. As the soil temperature cools down, growth stops. Garlic can be mulched in early winter, after the ground freezes. The mulch will hold in moisture and keep the ground stable.   As soil temperatures increase in the spring, the bulb begins its growth cycle.

As you see leaves emerge, feed your garlic every two weeks with Fish and Seaweed or Age Old Grow. Keep the area around your garlic weed free.

Garlic doesn’t like to be crowded. Garlic planted now will usually be ready for harvest around July 4^th.

Dig your garlic when the leaves start to turn brown. It’s best to use a garden fork to lift the garlic out of the ground.