Can garlic be planted in late winter or early spring? By early i mean as soon as I can work the soil.
Anyone else grow their own garlic?
- Thread starter turbo
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In our areas up north, it's best planted before the ground freezes, most people say after the first frost but while the ground is this workable. I don't usually wait for the first frost, I'll plant starting late September thru early to mid October. But I have planted as late as Thanksgiving. Garlic is harvested around the 4th of July, give or take a few days or a week or two.
With that said, you can plant as soon as the ground is workable. Your harvest may be small and you may only end up with what is called a round, a single clove garlic. It's still edilable, just not a head of cloves. Or you may end up with a head of cloves, but small cloves.
If you plant in late winter or early spring fertilze early. But don't fertilize after Mother's Day, that is my cut off date. If you continue to fertilze after that date your cloves will be smaller.
I hope this helps.
With that said, you can plant as soon as the ground is workable. Your harvest may be small and you may only end up with what is called a round, a single clove garlic. It's still edilable, just not a head of cloves. Or you may end up with a head of cloves, but small cloves.
If you plant in late winter or early spring fertilze early. But don't fertilize after Mother's Day, that is my cut off date. If you continue to fertilze after that date your cloves will be smaller.
I hope this helps.
+1
Full large heads of garlic need about 9 months to mature. If you want full heads for next year, plan accordingly like neoguy said. October is the best month for many of us to plant garlic.
Full large heads of garlic need about 9 months to mature. If you want full heads for next year, plan accordingly like neoguy said. October is the best month for many of us to plant garlic.
Does it taste much different vs store bought garlic? I thought about growing some but just wondering if it is worth my time/space.Thanks
FreeportBum, pretty much nailed garlic growing I think.
I had a good sized bed last year that I planted in early Nov '12, Pulled in late June.
I got it in in early Dec this year, We've had much lower temps this year than last so that might be a good thing, as the prior year gaot a little tall before hard freeze.
Some of it should have been pulled earlier as the heads had started to open and it wont keep as well.
Fairly narrow window on harvest it seems
A Vista volunteer lady that lives with us had worked the garlic crop in Argentina during harvest season and she said they always knotted their garlic just before it got ripe to force the energy to stay in the bulb I guess. It was my first big crop so I can't say.
I planted about 300 cloves again this year, from saved heads. I soak in a diluted rubbing alcohol a few seconds to kill virus/fungus at plant time.
It was a new raised bed with lots of compost in clay. I think it could have benefited from some additional nutes in the spring.
I got my original stock from http://www.potatogarden.com/
Go for the X large cloves if you big heads.
I had a good sized bed last year that I planted in early Nov '12, Pulled in late June.
I got it in in early Dec this year, We've had much lower temps this year than last so that might be a good thing, as the prior year gaot a little tall before hard freeze.
Some of it should have been pulled earlier as the heads had started to open and it wont keep as well.
Fairly narrow window on harvest it seems
A Vista volunteer lady that lives with us had worked the garlic crop in Argentina during harvest season and she said they always knotted their garlic just before it got ripe to force the energy to stay in the bulb I guess. It was my first big crop so I can't say.
I planted about 300 cloves again this year, from saved heads. I soak in a diluted rubbing alcohol a few seconds to kill virus/fungus at plant time.
It was a new raised bed with lots of compost in clay. I think it could have benefited from some additional nutes in the spring.
I got my original stock from http://www.potatogarden.com/
Go for the X large cloves if you big heads.
Interesting JJJessee. I've never seen anyone knot their garlic before. As far as harvesting goes, it is a delecate window of when to harvest. The advice I got from a large garlic farm up here in Wa said they wait until all the leaves have dried up except for the top 4 leaves. It would be hard to determine that with the knot.
I've read for hardneck garlics that when the spear starts to uncoil, you cut that off just above the top leaves so the plant doesnt put extra energy into growing the spear. But I've also read people get harvests that are just as good without cutting the spear.
I've read for hardneck garlics that when the spear starts to uncoil, you cut that off just above the top leaves so the plant doesnt put extra energy into growing the spear. But I've also read people get harvests that are just as good without cutting the spear.
The spear you refer to are called scapes. Scapes are edible, I would not use the woody ends near where you cut them but definitely the top parts.
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/dining/183arex.html?_r=0
http://www.doriegreenspan.com/2009/06/i-seem-to-be-on.html#more
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/18/dining/183arex.html?_r=0
http://www.doriegreenspan.com/2009/06/i-seem-to-be-on.html#more
I've read for hardneck garlics that when the spear starts to uncoil, you cut that off just above the top leaves so the plant doesnt put extra energy into growing the spear. +1 About 2-3 weeks after you cut the scape, check for the size of the garlic heads, and keep the scapes in the fridge until you need them. They'll stay fresh for about a month in a Ziploc bag. We don't usually eat the flower end of the scape, but they look nice in a salad! Nice mild garlic flavor.
I checked the garlic this AM as they're under heavy mulch. Many are already up and just may be harvested early this year. Last year they started to come up near the beginning of March - warmer weather sure has an influence on them.
Does your own garlic taste different? You bet. Then after you harvest the garlic in July, you can start your winter garden in it's place. We've grown bush beans, carrots, beets, and will be trying broccoli this year. Hopefully we'll have a later frost.
I checked the garlic this AM as they're under heavy mulch. Many are already up and just may be harvested early this year. Last year they started to come up near the beginning of March - warmer weather sure has an influence on them.
Does your own garlic taste different? You bet. Then after you harvest the garlic in July, you can start your winter garden in it's place. We've grown bush beans, carrots, beets, and will be trying broccoli this year. Hopefully we'll have a later frost.
I have 15 cloves planted. They are all up after that brutal winter.
Love me some garlic 
Thanks, pics from years past. Garlic patch is still under about 2ft of snow here.turbo said:Holy crap! Is that this year's crop already? Or pictures from last year's crop? They look beautiful either way
Thank you. I have 3 varieties, a porcelain and a couple of purple stripes. Good compost, fish/seaweed emulsion, cover crop tilled in before planting,and compost tea.JJJessee said:
We had a pretty mind winter this season (Seattle). About two weeks of snow and below freezing temps in late Dec / early Jan, but since then its been mid to upper 30s and raining.
Here are a couple of pictures of my garlic so far. The Japanese strain on the far left are growing really strong, but the Chesnok Red which is just to the right is pretty small still and has looked really spindly all winter.
Here are a couple of pictures of my garlic so far. The Japanese strain on the far left are growing really strong, but the Chesnok Red which is just to the right is pretty small still and has looked really spindly all winter.
Just purchased my seed garlic for this fall. I'm getting Island Star (softneck), and Japanese, Asian Tempest, Island Rocambole, Basque Turbo (all hardnecks) for next year's crop.
Just an FYI for anyone thinking about buying seed garlic for 2014/2015, get your orders in as early as possible. Most garlic farms will ship the best bulbs out to the earliest orders, so the later you get your order in the smaller the seed garlic will be.
Just an FYI for anyone thinking about buying seed garlic for 2014/2015, get your orders in as early as possible. Most garlic farms will ship the best bulbs out to the earliest orders, so the later you get your order in the smaller the seed garlic will be.
