sometimes "learning" is stinky :( Don't laugh...

I totally screwed up planting my onions and garlic. This is my first year..I just didn't understand.

I purchased garlic from a box store. Followed the directions on the back which showed a PHOTO af planting the WHOLE bulb, not individual cloves. So I did just that. Now I am realizing I should have seperated the cloves and planted THOSE.

I purchased onion "sets" and planted the "sets" 2-4 inches apart...thinking all the while, how in the world are they going to have room to grow like this? The onions were in a 6 pack and I planted what was in each little plastic well in 1 hole. and as they are growing my original suspicions are being confirmed. Dummy.

So I google (which I should have done BEFORE PLANTING, but had every confidence in my ability to read directions, and believed a set was what it implied MULTIPLES) planting onion sets and find a video, and sure enough this woman is SEPERATING what was in one plastic well and planting. UGH...why didnt I listen to myself back then?

So now that I totally screwed up the 2 things I was looking forward to the most in my garden...what should I do? just let them grow and pull and see if they are edible?

I am seriously thinking about doing this for a couple more years and then writing a Gardening for COMPLETE RETARDS book that explains things like ONION SETS, and even if the picture shows you planting the WHOLE bulb of garlic don't!, in language a 3 year old could understand.

Disgusted,

Jennie

I am sorry, but I *am* laughing. Mainly at a company that would put a picture of someone planting a whole clove of garlic. I am certain that you are not alone in your mistake. Maybe it is a way of getting people to buy twice, since they have to try again.

As far as the onions go, is it possible to pull a bunch out and just leave a few to bulb? They may be save-able yet.

I believe garlic is usually grown in the fall to be harvested in the late spring. I just use what you get from the market, but that is b/c I am excessively cheap. Almost time to start again. Did it ever send out a shoot and look like it was growing? It will be interesting to see what you get.

Well, now that you have learned so much, I guess that commits you to another year. So, you are hooked.

actually the garlic has sent up amazing amounts of beautiful great tasting shoots. they grew tall, healthy...just beautiful.

I moved around the dirt last night and its like a garlic shallot on the end of each plant...I pulled one up and it smells WONDERFUL and seems usable. Im just not going to get a BULB per se. I am going to plant fall garlic like it is supposed to be done. The only reason I planted this was because I read somewhere that its ok to do two crops one in spring for late summer and one in fall for spring. And it said that the fall planting will taste significantly better because that is the ideal time.

Hmmm...you think I could dig up those onions and pull them apart and replant? hmmm thats a thought....does anyone else think that I could do that? Any cautions? I guess at this point its not going to matter if I try and they die.

thanks chopper I didnt even think of that.

Jennie

You gave me a little chuckle too but I'm laughing with you - not at you. (or so the expression goes.) Don't feel bad. I've been learning basics like that in the past year or so also. I haven't planted garlic yet but might just do it this year. Onions I did but with no great success. I planted shallots last spring with no success, then over-wintered them and hopefully I'll get something this summer - time will tell. I think you ought to do that book like you said. I think it would be a huge seller - I might just buy one myself. There is so much that is presumed that everyone knows but nope - we don't. With all of the above (with the exception of garlic, which I haven't tried yet) I didn't know what I was doing either and can totally understand your confusion. This year was just "tuition" for your gardening education and with gardening I'm learning that you never stop learning.

Just don't be discouraged! We all do funny things sometimes.

I am not sure, but I don't think you could pull them up and replant them. but, you could pull out some so that the remaining ones have room to grow. You could try replanting the ones you pull, but I would not expect them to live. But one never knows, do one?

OK! Well I will let you know how it works out...

Im thankful both garlic and onions can be planted again in the fall and winter over...at least I dont have to wait until NEXT spring to start over...

When would that be that you would plant these agian for fall and wintering over?

OK...I was just re-reading this whole post, and I just have to apologize for my coment regarding the potenital book idea. That may have been very offensive to some folks...and I just didnt mean it that way. I was referring to myself and my own inept-ness.

I am taking suggestions for a new title since my quick/flip/off the cuff title is horribly rude and inappropriate.

I apologize to anyone I may have offended with my poorly thought out statement.

Jennie

I only know about western Washington, garlic can go in as late as October (my guy says that they can go in anytime before the ground freezes, he likes to put his in September, so when the kiddo's go back to school.... do you know when to expect the ground to freeze hard in Idaho? The chart also says that garlic is hardy (unprotected) to 8 degrees F.

He says WW onions get planted around the 10th of August and if properly hardened (not up to us) they will survive down to as low as 0 degrees F. For Walla Walla's, plant in September, they survive to 10 degrees F.

He also says that excessive rain is more likely to kill onions and garlic in Western Washington than freezing, which is probably not an issue in Idaho. Wish I had better "area specific" information for you, but I can wish you luck.

Deborah.... Luck!

BTW, who ever put a pic of a whole garlic being planted was the person with the defective thought process. AND if you replant your onions what is the worst that could happen and how would that be worse then what you already have? You may end up with terrific salad onions.... you cannot prove it by me, but people keep telling me that you cannot kill onions with a hammer.

The first year I planted corn, I went out one morning to check and see if it sprouted yet. There was "corn" all over the garden. My nephew thought I was a city girl and would not realize that he came over at night to stick unshucked ears of corn into the ground from Safeway. Someday (if not today) your garlic will be a funny story, sounds like you might even earn a few bucks for it.

I wish I had a buck for every time I did something really dumb. I'd be rich!

When I restarted gardening (for the first time in TX), I was still on Nebraska timing where you plant almost everything in the spring. I planted onion seeds and garlic and surprisingly, they didn't do so well. After the garlic was somewhat established, and the onions had done nothing but FINALLY make a tiny little thread after weeks, I read that both should have been fall planted. The garlic did produce a little for me, but it took FOREVER because I had to wait until the next summer to get much of anything. The bunching onions never did much of anything and just faded away with the summer heat.

Because of that, I've learned that you can pull and use garlic nearly any time of year, but how easy it is to peel and use is very different if you harvest at the "wrong" time. I haven't tried onion from seed again, I'm just not sure I have that much patience. I plan on giving it another whirl this fall, but if it's as slow again as it was the first time, I will be planting by sets only from here on out.

I'm betting you'll still get good onions and probably garlic as well.
The bulbs may be smaller than ideal, but alliums are forgiving. I would
pull some of the onions as "green" or bunching onions before they bulb
up and thin the plants that way. If the other onions come up, just
replant them. I've pulled up both garlic and onions by accident and
just plopped them back in. It didn't seem to set them back too much.
When I pulled up my leeks that I had purchased in bunches in 4" pots, I
just separated and used the biggest and replanted all the slips that
were less than pinky-finger thick. Those went back in the ground
(separated this time) and they will be the next crop of leeks. I read, I
think on here somewhere, that someone had never had to buy leeks after
she planted the first time. She would just save the little guys to
replant.

My neighbor across the street planted her asparagus crowns upside down. She was proudly showing me her newly placed plants and I was like, "Umm, I don't know how to say this, but I think those might be upside down." She felt really silly, but I told her that I had to take a really close look when I went to plant mine. She turned them all over and they're doing just fine, now!

So, Jennie, don't feel bad for doing silly things, especially when led astray by a photo!

Sharon

That is fantastic info. I have learned a lot on this thread.

I did the same thing with my onions this year. Oh well i have been pulling little ones off and putting them in my salad. Maybe i'll try and pull a few more of and plant them seperatly to see what happens

anyway your not alone

I'm still laughing! What a great idea. I'm sure many of use could contribute to to such a book. It never hurts to laugh at ourselves!

I might add, it took me YEARS to switch from New Jersey to South Carolina planting schedules. Some kind person finally told me to get an information booklet from Clemson Extension Service (this is all pre-Web), and when I realized that you can't harvest lettuce and tomatoes here simultaneously, I wept.

It is fun to laugh at yourself...and it's always nice to have y'all here to help me remember to do it.

I think Complete Idiot's Guide just doesn't really go low enough....thus my previous politically incorrect title. I need it to be like The Dumb, Dumber and Dumbest Guide to gardening. LOL.

Here is another example....what is a "slip"? I have heard this phrase used with sweet potatoes as well and again this is something books and jackets just assume you know.

Maybe what I really need is a IDIOTS GLOSSERY. Because it seems to be the terms like hardening off, dampening off, leggy, slip, set, and the like that there is no definition for in the books and on seed packets.
Oh well. Live and learn.

And just to show you the garlic really wasnt my fault:





The directions even said BULB.

Thanks again everyone. I'll let you know how the onions turn out, gonna do some thinning and replanting here in a bit and see what comes of it.

PS: The asparagus tops made me feel MUCH better!

Slip I know very well b/c I learned it and experienced it this year. With sweet potatoes, you can place them in water and vines will start growing out of them. Sometimes the vines develop roots right there and sometimes they don't. Either way, when they are about 6 inches long, you cut them off the mother and plant. Took me a long time to wrap my head around that.

Below is a half of a SP with some vines starting to grow. I suspended in water and since learned I didn't need to do that. You can just sit a whole potato partway up in water. I bought the potato at the supermarket.


It took forever to start growing the vines - I almost just chucked them, but when they did, they really took off. You can see some of the roots, too, in this pic.


This is June 30th. They are much bigger now and I hope to be eating some on Thanksgiving. They are in a 2X2 bed. I am guessing a bit on the spacing and they get very viney so I put them by themselves.

That is so awesome.

SO what part is the "slip"? Or is slip the process of what you did?

I love this forum. Even something like my dumb mistake can turn into such an awesome experience.

Ok people! My onions are seperated and replanted. What was in one square (covering face) is now in 7 squares!!! All the roots were really long, and oh boy did they smell really good. As I was doing this I was imagining all these little squished onions saying. "Ahhhhhhhhh, thatnk you lady! We were so uncomfortable! Now we can grow!" So think goor re-rooting thoughts for my little walla walla's.

THANK YOU EVERYONE!!!!

If it was my book I'd call it

The little book of Duh!

Subtitle: Answers to garden questions everyone else seems to know but you were too information overloaded to ask so you just assumed (and now know what that makes you)

middlemamma wrote:That is so awesome.

SO what part is the "slip"? Or is slip the process of what you did?

Ooops. Details. The slip is the part you cut off of the mother plant - the vine part.

I haven't looked this up anywhere, but to me a "slip" is a baby plant with some roots. The onion slips I bought were like little tiny green onions (they're working on bulbing onions). They were obviously an actively growing plant that got shipped like a "bareroot" transplant.

Onions sets, on the other hand, are more like a little, bitty, dormant, started to bulb then got dried, onion. Hope this helps a little.

Sharon

So five days ago I dug all the onions up, carefully seperated the tangled up roots and replanted them all. And they look like they are going to make it!! They have not wilted or drooped or anything!! How exciting is that!!

I actually did the same with the garlic, but that was only 3 days ago and they are not looking great, but Im not giving up hope yet. I will report in a few more days if they made it or not.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and input on this thread.

middlemamma wrote:
I actually did the same with the garlic, but that was only 3 days ago and they are not looking great, but I'm not giving up hope yet. I will report in a few more days if they made it or not.

Thanks everyone for your thoughts and input on this thread.

Exciting. We all learn by doing and failing some and winning some in gardening. And that picture was definitely the whole garlic bulb being planted. F'idiots...

F'idiots?!? Oh dear, I'm afraid I like that one and will have to be very careful to NOT use it.....I work with grammar and high school students on-line and they will know what it means better than I do.

Idaho has been hot Hot HOT, so water Water WATER those babies to get them through the shallow root time. They might just recover.

You are a brave plantmomma!

F'idiots?!? Oh dear, I'm afraid I like that one and will have to be very careful to NOT use it....

LOLLOLOLOLOLOLOL Im dying, I love this forum so much. I sit and read when Im overwhelmed with life and I will be sure to find something to make me laugh !!! I like that title.. cause I have tomato bushes that are so green and lush and after having no tomatoes, I know I have to prune!!!!! to get tomatoes not just bushes. And I planted a mint in a sq ft to save it well.. can you say I told you so cause I said that to myself already, it will be a nice potted plant when I get the pot!!!!

I will have updates finally today I have been reading everyone's posts, just not been able to get my own in.
Im so glad I know I can plant garlic twice!!!! Is that like a twice baked potato? I like learning from others and hope someone can learn from me
Ha-v-v

With houseplants a slip is generally a cutting taken from a plant and rooted in water or with root compound.