Ever Grow Garlic?

Anyone ever grow garlic? Everything I read online said to plant them in the fall, if you plant them in the spring they won't be as big/good. But the bag of garlic bulbs said start in spring. Any ideas? Have you had any success with them in the past?

I love fresh garlic drizzled with olive oil and roasted but Have never planted garlic befor but am waiting too alot of articles i have read say if you plant in the fall you get a more robust flavor

Wait, was your question if anyone had planted garlic or grown garlic??? I planted some last fall - stay tuned to see if they grow.

I have grown garlic in my SFG in the fall. It did awesome. I have never tried growing it in the spring.

I tried growing in the spring and they didn't fair too well, but that may have been the weather also.

Garlic likes lots of compost.

We use TONS of garlic in our house, but have never planted it. Is there a big difference in taste between homegrown and storebought?

We use TONS of garlic in our house, but have never planted it. Is there
a big difference in taste between homegrown and storebought?

I haven't grown it, but I've bought fresh garlic from the Farmer's Market. It was part of their initial crop, and hadn't been dried yet. It was a-mazing. We ended up going back for more, and made a batch of chili where the primary flavor was one bulb of garlic. Definitely worth it if you can make it work! I'm also interested in finding some heirloom varieties...

Well I bought 3 bulbs (with a bunch of cloves on each), and I think I will plant 1 bulbs worth now, and the rest in the fall. I'll keep everyone posted when I get my first crop.

Yes, I have planted garlic for a couple of years. I've always planted in October/November here in Pittsburgh. Very easy to grow.

Plant 1 clove and get a whole bulb! I have 4 per square.

Snip the 'flower', aka 'scape', that shoots up. Chop it up and use it like you would garlic, has a lighter flavor.

Harvest when the leaves turn brown and fall over. Usually in mid-summer, I think. I cut off roots and leaves and dry them. Some people braid the leaves and hang them.

Save a bulb or two (healthy ones) to plant again.

Here's a pic of my garlic now...

we've got garlic in now - will let you know how it worked. we planted in october. zone 5 here.

i love your chicken wire enclosre. pls share details!

As Dan mentioned, the scape is awesome lightly sautéed in butter. Garlic almost grows itself.
We have a family friend who buys some organic garlic cloves from somewhere in Ontario then plants it into his garden (not SFG unfortunately) in the fall and basically just leaves it. Comes back in the spring once in a while to water and remove weeds. When the long green scape makes a little piggy tail, you just pull it out of the garlic carefully, it's probably the mildest and best tasting part of garlic IMO.
Our friend sells the scapes to higher end restaurants and resorts then sells the garlic bulb later in the year to the same customers. They pay well for fresh local produce and it's like 2 crops in one.

I dug up some Texas wild garlic over 10 years ago and I grow them every year. Actually they grow themselves as they reseed by little bulbets when you pull the main bulbs. The ones I planted when I moved here in October in a non-SFG (in ground) garden are about 1 foot tall right now. Three that I planted in a raised lasagna bed (SFG style) are at least 2 ft. tall and have the largest stem I've ever seen. Can't wait to harvest them to see if the bulb is in proportion to the stem. If so they will be larger than the elephant garlic.

I also plant elephant garlic each year, but it doesn't re-seed, so I save a dozen cloves to re plant in the fall. Spring planted garlic doesn't do very well around here as the tops dry up before the bulbs reach full size.

Here are the details on my chicken wire enclosure for those that asked.

http://deerproofgarden.blogspot.com/2010/03/version-20.html

Let me know if you want more detail. It's a ongoing experiment.

Dan

I've always planted in the spring 'cause I never think about planting in the fall. But my regional host, Lavender Debs, is going to remind me in our regional forum this year.

We started canning a couple years ago and have found we love the garlic used for seasoning when it's pickled . This year we're trying to grow enough to make jars of just pickled garlic!

It appears that almost everyone is agreeing that fall is the best time. So here's a twist to the question. I, too, have garlic to plant and got it now because the instructions say to plant in the spring or fall. Does anyone know how best to keep the bulbs so that they are still good in the fall? Dark cool place? Something like that? Or should I just accept that these are lost causes and buy new in the fall?

I did read somewhere if you wanted to plant them in the spring you could put them in the fridge for a couple of days to simulate winter temps, which would then cause them to do better when you plant them. Don't know if it's true, but I planted some of my garlic last month after putting them in the fridge. They are growing like crazy, but I won't know what they will be like when they are harvested.

I suppose it can't hurt to try!! Thanks!

donnainzone10 wrote:I planted two squares of garlic sets last fall. They grew beautifully. However, I pulled some up, only to discover that no bulbs have formed. Should I leave the rest in? Or start over?

harvest the garlic in mid july when the scapes are brown and wilty . .

that's what the garden center told me when i bought my garlic this past fall and planted it in october.

hth

I see the general consensus is to plant in the fall. I live in NW Ohio, (no idea what zone that is) and our winters can range from relatively mild to sub zero, just depends on the year. If you put garlic in the fall will a cold winter kill it since it is in an above ground bed? Second, I saw someone mention they did 4 per square, is that the max or can you do more per square?

Since it appears that this crop won't come in until mid July I thought I would create a smaller fence box to put the garlic in like Mel shows in his designs, that way my main beds are free for other stuff come spring. The cold is what has me worried, I am wondering if the box perched up on a fence through the winter would be just too cold for the garlic to survive. Any thoughts?

i planted garlic last year in the spring, it did great. its a breed my friends husband had created by combining 2 types, (dont ask me how he did this, i have no idea- but he had a greenhouse buisness).

you harvest it when the tops start dying back and turn brown, usually late fall. i kept 2 bulbs to plant this spring by putting in a brown paper bag and leaving in the crisper drawer. we were planning on moving so i didnt want to do a fall planting.

basically what my friends husband told me was- if you plant in the fall you have less work in the spring and they have longer to grow, but it is ok to plant in the spring, and early spring is best as garlic likes the cold. just make sure if you save any and dont plant them in the fall to keep in the fridg in a brown paper sack. (just an added note- you can keep onionsthat you buy @ the grocery store to eat the same way and they will stay good longer. Also any potatoes you harvest and want to use as seed potatoes next year.)

i have 9 garlic plants growing now, a few cloves were a little mushy so i didnt plant them. if it wasnt so late i'd go take pics and post to show you how well they are doing. but i will tomorrow. and then the trick is seeing if i can post them- lol. havent tried that yet.

so i hope this helps, and sorry so long, but i prefer to be wordy and make sense than short and confusing. (hee hee, my post i mean- not me personally)

I got pretty detailed planting dates before I started my gardens, but nothing in garlic. In my ignorance I planted in March. They are one of the best looking things in the garden. Time will tell.