Now’s the Time to Plant Garlic and Onions

Garlic and onions are members of the allium family. They are well suited for planting in the fall and will produce a good crop come late spring into summer. Like other spring flowering bulbs, garlic and onions planted now will set roots and start to grow. As the soil temperature cools down, growth stops. When soil temperatures increase in the spring, the bulb will resume its growth cycle. 

There are many different varieties of garlic, all of which fall into two general categories, softneck and hardneck. Softneck garlic is the kind you will generally find in the grocery store. Softneck garlic has a mild flavor and generally stores well. Soft neck garlics have a flexible stalk which can be braided. 

Hardneck garlic also has a stalk –called a scape- which coils at the top. If left to mature, hardneck garlic will produce a flower which is several small bulbils, or tiny bulbs, which are edible. Hardnecks dry to a hard stem, hence the name. As a group, they have a deeper, richer flavor than softnecks do, but they don’t store as well as softneck garlic. 

Garlic and onions can be planted in traditional rows, in raised beds or scattered randomly in the perennial bed or rose garden.  Whichever you choose, be such and mark the planting site. 

 

Begin by selecting high quality seed garlic. Garlic purchased in grocery stores is often treated with sprout inhibitors, disrupting the growth cycle. Break the bulb into individual cloves. This is often referred to as “cracking” the bulb. Each clove should produce a bulb of 6-8 cloves. 

 

Garlic and onions like to be planted in full sun and well-drained soils, so incorporate an organic soil amendment such as Sheep, Peat, and Compost into your planting site. Once the soil has been amended incorporate some Bone Meal or Phosphate into your garlic bed. This will facilitate root development. 

Plant each garlic clove 3” to 4” deep, pointy end up and spaced 6” to 8” apart.  Plant onion bulbs 2” to 3” deep, 4" to 5” apart.  

 

Garlic needs a cold period of at least 40 days (about 1 and a half months). Otherwise, the bulb won’t set properly. This process is called vernalization, whereby the cold temperatures stress the seed, encouraging it to divide it into separate cloves.  

Come spring, when new shoots are about 3” high, side dress with Blood Meal. At 12-0-0, this will provide the Nitrogen garlic, shallots and onions need to grow and develop. 

Garlic and onions should be mulched in early winter, after the ground freezes. Around Thanksgiving, apply a 4” to 5” layer of mulch to the planting site. The mulch will hold in moisture and keep the ground cold and stable.  Soil Pep is a good choice for mulch as it can be worked into the ground after harvest.   

 

 

Softneck garlic planted now will usually be ready for harvest around July 4th. Dig softnecks when the leaves turn brown. Hardneck garlic will mature a little later in the season. They’re ready to harvest when the scapes straighten out.  

Onions are ready to harvest when the tops turn yellow and fall over. Green onions can be harvested earlier, before the bulbs start to form.