Garlic

SFG in Chicago 8/18/2010, 10:36 am

So I'd like to try planting some garlic this fall. I've read up on it a bit and have learned I shouldn't plant supermarket garlic for 2 reasons. 1) it's the wrong type of garlic for this climate & 2) it's treated with something to keep it from sprouting. Well I can say that the 2nd reason is not a factor. Almost all of the garlic I buy from my grocery store's crappy produce department is already sprouting when I bring it home.

I looked into ordering garlic but I can't buy a small enough quantity and it's too expensive for the small amount I want to grow. Does anybody places like Home Depot will be selling garlic for planting? If not I may just try the grocery store garlic anyway.
Thanks,
Virginia

jenjehle 8/18/2010, 11:14 am

I bought 2 large bulbs at my local Farmer's Market. I assume theirs is organic and will be just what I need. So I'm planning on planting those. Taking the cloves apart and planting the individual cloves. I'm hoping it works!

Check your local farmers market, if you have one close. Or maybe someone on the board here has a few extras they could send you.

You could post on the Seed Exchange board that you're looking for some... just a thought.

Jenny

SFG in Chicago 8/18/2010, 11:42 am

Thank you Jenny, I didn't even think about the farmers market. Duh! I think there's one a few towns over today in fact.

Thanks!
Virginia

dixie 8/18/2010, 12:16 pm

I have always used supermarket garlic to plant with excellent results. I just choose the largest bulbs available. Good luck.

chocolatepop 8/18/2010, 2:46 pm

I'd go with farmers market also. I purchased my garlic from welovegarlic.com, they are located in Wisconsin so the climate/weather is very similar. I should be similar to you also, with some variations of course.

jenjehle 8/18/2010, 2:49 pm

chocolatepop wrote:I'd go with farmers market also. I purchased my garlic from welovegarlic.com, they are located in Wisconsin so the climate/weather is very similar. I should be similar to you also, with some variations of course.

CP, I tried that site you listed and got no results! Is there another few letters or something? I'm eager to check out what sounds like a GREAT site Smile

Once again, you ROCK rock on

jenjehle 8/18/2010, 3:34 pm

Did some Googling.....Could that site be www.wegrowgarlic.com ????

They are in Wisconsin and seem to have a million and one varieties of garlic. So you can't just get some basic garlic.... I was so confused after visiting that site! I was looking for something simple.

CP~any varieties you would suggest??

Thanks!
Jenny

dixie 8/18/2010, 4:09 pm

Thanks for the link. I just placed an order for 10 different types to see what will work for me in TN. It should be interesting.

chocolatepop 8/18/2010, 4:48 pm

Opps

there goes me trying to write and listen to silly freshmen football boys.

I am ordering music, new york new york, northern,Pennsylvania Dutch,, and several others. I was told to stick with hardnecks, since they do so much better in our climate, but you are a little more south and could play with that notion. I got both and am going to see how it works.

dixie 8/18/2010, 6:45 pm

I got some of each too. They had sold out of a LOT of the varieties.

jenjehle 8/18/2010, 6:58 pm

dixie wrote:I got some of each too. They had sold out of a LOT of the varieties.

I noticed they were SOLD OUT of a lot also. Guess next year we'll have to check them out a little earlier Wink

I have no idea what to get even if I did get some. I'm just a plain ole' no frills garlic kinda girl. The kind I get at the Farmer's Market works just fine for what I need it for.

Being honest, and may sound funny, but I didn't even know there were THAT many different varieties! I figured there were a few different kinds but WOW!!! That page with the different varieties seemed to go on forever!

Thank again, CP!
Jenny

chocolatepop 8/18/2010, 8:59 pm

Yeah, I placed my order in june and they invoiced me last week and it arrived today. You can also sign up for and they will send you a reminder when it is time to order Wink

boffer 8/18/2010, 9:07 pm

I found out today that I'm going to a garlic festival the last weekend of August. Here's a list of garlic festivals around the country-I didn't know there was such a thing!

http://www.garlicseedfoundation.info/festivals.htm

I bet you could find more if you went looking.

**camprn** 8/18/2010, 10:25 pm

I can hardly believe how many varieties they are out of! affraid

Wyldflower 8/18/2010, 10:39 pm

I've been thinking about planting garlic, too. I think I'll head to the organic/health food store and see what they have... there's a really good locally run store near me (Mountain Mama) ....Or maybe pick some up at Whole Foods (though they are kind of costly, and they're farther from me.) I'll check the Farmers' Markets too, but I'm not sure that all of the vendors are organic. I don't think I'd trust regular supermarket garlic, though... Didn't someone say it's treated to prevent it from sprouting?

dixie 8/18/2010, 11:04 pm

I don't know if garlic is treated for sprouting or not, but it grows really well for me. Supermarket potatoes are usually treated to keep from sprouting.

jenjehle 8/19/2010, 12:22 am

Wyldflower wrote:I don't think I'd trust regular supermarket garlic, though... Didn't someone say it's treated to prevent it from sprouting?

I've never heard this before. Only about potatoes. I just wanted to use Farmer's Market garlic b/c I wanted organic. But I think any type of garlic should work fine.

Jenny

Chopper 8/19/2010, 12:36 am

I planted regular old supermarket garlic (and potatoes and sweet potatoes) and they all did well.

Old Hippie 8/19/2010, 1:51 am

I have tried growing garlic a few times and even though I plant it in the fall I never seem to get very big heads from it. When I couldn't find any at the garden centres to plant in the fall, I just used supermarket stuff. It didn't seem to matter which kind I tried, the results are always the same...not very good. Are there any special tricks to growing it? Actually, I have the same problems with onions and find it rather disappointing.

Anyone have any ideas?

GK

Mirjam 8/19/2010, 1:56 am

I planted mine from a supermarket-bulb, which means it's a variety normally grown in southern France, but it did okay here in holland (about 1500 km to the north). Bulbs weren't as big as they could have been, but the taste is really good. I figured that, because they don't grow that big, I can just as easily plant 16 in a square, instead of the 9 I did last year. That way I'll have more to harvest, even though they are smaller.

Chopper 8/19/2010, 2:08 am

Old Hippie wrote:I have tried growing garlic a few times and even though I plant it in the fall I never seem to get very big heads from it. When I couldn't find any at the garden centres to plant in the fall, I just used supermarket stuff. It didn't seem to matter which kind I tried, the results are always the same...not very good. Are there any special tricks to growing it? Actually, I have the same problems with onions and find it rather disappointing.

Anyone have any ideas?

GK

From what I have read about zone 3b: plant in Oct/Nov and harvest in October. Long season. And...that was for Montreal which I believe is a tad warmer.

jenjehle 8/19/2010, 10:44 am

Old Hippie wrote:I have tried growing garlic a few times and even though I plant it in the fall I never seem to get very big heads from it. When I couldn't find any at the garden centres to plant in the fall, I just used supermarket stuff. It didn't seem to matter which kind I tried, the results are always the same...not very good. Are there any special tricks to growing it? Actually, I have the same problems with onions and find it rather disappointing.

Anyone have any ideas?

GK

I was thinking I've heard that garlic is a heavy feeder. They need lots of nutrients to grow. Have your tried fertilizing?

Here's a link to what looks like great info about growing garlic. Maybe you'll find some ideas here; I haven't read the entire page yet.

http://wegrowgarlic.com/12401/17001.html

Take care,
Jenny

middlemamma 8/19/2010, 12:29 pm

Those of you that said you bought some varieties....would you consider allowing me to purchase some of what you won't be planting?

Ideally I would like to plant 36 cloves this fall...and I would try any variety. I live in 5B Post Falls Idaho. I think any kind would do ok here.

I have looked at buying online and just cant try a few different kinds because of the cost of their minimum orders. Hubby is out of work and I just can't justify spending 45 dollars on garlic lol.

PM me if anyone is interested in selling me some cloves Smile

Old Hippie 8/19/2010, 7:34 pm

Thanks for suggestions on growing garlic. I checked out the sites but most was for warmer zones than mine. Most said to plant in about October but by then we could have snow. Ackkk! Garlic Icon_eek

So I went looking for Canadian stuff. I have a number of books written by a woman named Lois Hole who gardened in Alberta, Canada for years in a zone 3b to 4. She says it should be planted in August in our zone and also to give it lots of bonemeal when you plant it like you do any fall bulbs. She recommends planting onions then too. And yes, they are heavy feeders so need lots of fertilizer. Thanks everyone!! Dang! I am going to get this right yet!

GK

pattipan 8/19/2010, 7:57 pm

I ordered a few different bulbs from http://www.wegrowgarlic.com . Thanks for that link! This is the kind of place I was hoping to find when I asked about it on another thread. I too want to try some different types. Those of you that ordered from them, did it take awhile to get a notice from PayPal for payment? I ordered yesterday and still have not gotten a request for payment.

http://www.territorialseed.com is another good source, but you have a buy a pound of one kind of garlic. They need to get with the program...that is, the SFG program! We SFG'ers like to grow a variety, yes? Seems like "the grid," just lends itself to trying different things, don't you think?

pattipan

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