garlic

what is the protocol for saving/preserving garlic. I overplanted the stuff. I have pulled off a bunch.........scrubbed the dirt off and hung them in the carport. How long do they last and what other means of preserving them......I thought of sneaking a few of the elephant bulbs in with the dill pickles without the wife knowing.........

I am still using garlic I grew last season in 9 square feet. but it's almost gone. For more info see Friday Rookie Topic: Garlic

We are eating our last bulb of garlic from last years garden. Luckily soon there will be scapes.

I cure and then heap in a basket in the kitchen all the bulbs. The smallest get used first. I freeze pesto and chop the garlic into the basil with olive oil for that. Freeze it in sheets. I put chopped garlic on a lot of the tomatoes I bake and hten freeze. And if I really have lots I chop and freeze it in sheets to use like dried garlic in stews and such.

turan
Your preserving sounds interesting. (sorry to hijack a thread) but could you explain more clearly what you do with the garlic and tomatoes before you freeze them.
and do you just chop up the garlic and put it on sheets to freeze?

GWN wrote:turan
Your preserving sounds interesting. (sorry to hijack a thread) but could you explain more clearly what you do with the garlic and tomatoes before you freeze them.
and do you just chop up the garlic and put it on sheets to freeze?

I quarter or half the tomatoes and lay them on an oiled cookie sheet pretty tight together, skin side down. Chop a bunch of peeled cloves and spread them over the tomatoes. Sometimes salt a lil, or sprinkle with balsamic vinegar. Bake at 300-350 for a few hours till tomato pieces have lost half their size. Then bag in a single layer so you can get out just a few at a time. Freeze in that layer. Of course the first pan gets devoured with out sitting down. They are very good added to soups and stews and can be further blended if you like smooth sauce.

To preserve the straight garlic I just fill the food processor with peeled garlic and chop. then I add some olive oil. Spread on a sheet of plastic wrap on a cookie sheet and freeze. Then roll up the frozen sheet of chopped garlic and bag. Then I can take as much as I want from it at any time. I want to avoid blocks of frozen stuff that are hard to break up into how ever much i need for the moment.

I hope that is clear as mud

Thanks for this post. Very interesting stuff. I may have to put some garlic in the ground.

turan
that is totally clear, and sounds yummy. Also a great way to preserve excess tomatoes
I doubt whether I will have excess garlic this year, I planted about 80. I am going to attempt to braid them and hang them, but if they show signs of not lasting over the winter, your second idea would also be great

But i am going to plant WAYY more next fall.

I just harvested 20 bulbs of garlic. Nothing special - just the supermarket type. Easiest thing I've ever grown in my garden. However, garlic is 3 for $1, so I saved $6 tops. Nonetheless, its fun, its easy.

James, think she will notice!

I use garlic in cooking but I have never grown any. This post makes me want to grow some!

How do you know when garlic is ready to pull? I was told they don't do well in the summer here. I planted a few as an experiment to see if they will grow. I have some tall bushy flowers growing around them and they seem to be doing fine. Could I plant more garlic in a shady area?

Garlic likes full sun however you may have extreme conditions there. A net to reduce the suns intensity at times may be beneficial. Choose seed garlic that was developed to thrive in your climate. Here is a Texas grower to check out for starters. I use local sources to get seed stock that is already acclimated. http://www.gourmetgarlicgardens.com/
I think my first for real crop is about ready to begin harvest of some of the 13 varieties planted.

Turan,

I roast my extra tomatoes the same as you do and freeze them but I never thought about doing the same for the garlic!

I planted some garlic for the 1st time and just harvested them. I found that I let them go too long since some of them were dried out - so live and learn. I still got a decent amount for only planting about six. It seems since the winter was mild the garlic was ready early.

I so plan on planting more garlic in the fall again since it is simple and fun!

I think everyone should try growing garlic if only once.

Just dug up another garlic, and this is likely a dumb question, but this is my first full garlic year....
Can I just chop it up for supper, or do I need to dry it somewhat first?

You can use it FRESH! YUM!

songstriss wrote:How do you know when garlic is ready to pull? I was told they don't do well in the summer here. I planted a few as an experiment to see if they will grow. I have some tall bushy flowers growing around them and they seem to be doing fine. Could I plant more garlic in a shady area?

Earlier this yeay out in the flower gardens I planted a couple of dozen garlic in among the tall bulb corms and tubers such as gladiolia, iris & lillyium's etc . They have not done well at all either too much shade or there is an intefernce rather than companion planting , the garlics are just very thin strands of wirey greenery .

Is there a way to know when your posts get moved?
I have just found a response to mine, on my email, when I click on the response to my question about garlic, I get the compost balls site.
I DID put the garlic fresh out of the garden into a pesto last night, but found it all rather bland
For now I think I am going to get started at harvesting the garlic bed and drying them at least a little bit before eating them.

I use fresh garlic because we're down to a few bulbs from last year and they have heavily sprouted. But.....garlic doesn't get full flavored until it has cured.