Garlic mistakes I've made

ChristinaJo · December 26, 2014

The WORST mistake I've made is eating all the biggest bulbs and planting the rest.....
It made the bulb size go down. Now I save the best bulbs(rule applies for all other veggies and seeds) to replant.
The second is not having the knowledge of when to harvest and how to cure and store.
I'm grateful for this site and the people I learn from. I may never meet y'all, but I am truly blessed.

JJJessee · December 26, 2014

Amen.
Don't wash them, either.
Lost a lot of my first crop to maggot when drying in an outdoor shed in the woods.
They and onions need some truly dry preferably moving air to get them to a sweet moisture spot.
This year's garlic only had about 10% damage, which I used fresh. Onions, I lost >80% :-(
Yes, plant the big ones.
Try French Rose, a beautiful, mild hardneck.

Father'sDaughter · December 26, 2014

And don't leave them out in full sun when drying. I made this mistake one year and they overheated--didn't store well at all.

AlittleSalt · December 26, 2014

I can plant a clove of garlic - and it grows an entire bulb smaller than the clove I planted. So don't do anything I do. Joking aside, only plant large bulbs. I wish I could give more advice, but I am just learning myself.

Zeedman · December 26, 2014

I learned not to plant garlic on the low end of the garden. It can tolerate a lot of winter cold, but wet feet in Spring will cause heavy losses. A foot of standing water qualifies as "wet feet".

Provide plenty of drainage (plant on raised beds if necessary) and cover with a good layer of hay to reduce both weeds and frost heave.

After digging, I dry the garlic in the garden initially, until the soil on the roots crumbles off easily. I protect it from the sun by covering it with some of the hay that it was mulched with. Once I've removed the excess soil, the garlic gets hung up to cure in an unheated shed.

PhilaGardener · December 26, 2014

Quote:

Originally Posted by Zeedman

A foot of standing water qualifies as "wet feet".

Maybe you should try rice instead!

Worth1 · December 26, 2014

Treat the garlic as you would a new born baby after is is pulled.
It bruises easily.

Worth

jmsieglaff · December 26, 2014

Not planting enough! It always goes fast in our house.

ChristinaJo · January 4, 2015

I grow Rose de Lautrec and Rose de Violette from France. That's why I could kick myself for eating the bigger cloves. I am hoping they'll size up again.

Is the French Rose the same thing or another variety?

JJJessee · January 4, 2015

I'm not adept at garlic ID. Mine seem a little less flatten than the Rose de Lautrec picture I found. I could not find a Rose de Violette photo.

These show much more purplish-rose when another wrapper layer is removed.

French Rose

ChristinaJo · January 4, 2015

Beautiful! Nice!

peppero · January 5, 2015

I think I planted my first garlic from store bought stuff and added to it over a period of time. The parents of a former high school student passed away and they had an established place for garlic that was huge. He told me to get all I wanted and I got quite a bit and ended giving starts to a lot of people. I really enjoy the harvest each year and leave quite a bit in the ground and it just keeps on producing and I just keep on enjoying it and giving it away. Wonderful stuff.

jon

bjbebs · January 8, 2015

I've grown and marketed the same garlic strain for 30 years. I live in central Illinois.
Just a few observations that may help someone.
Plant out Sept 10- Oct 10 [2-4 inches deep]
Mulch lightly with mowed leaves
As plants emerge add more leaves
Tops will appear to go dormant sometime in Dec
Roots will continue to grow until ground freezes hard
Garlic will come out of dormancy in March
Scapes will begin to show in early June [snap or cut these off as they grow]
Garlic must be harvested during a dry spell [usually around July 10]
Dry off the ground, in the shade and under cover
After 3 weeks, clean up the plant and cut neck to an inch or so
The plant still needs to cure a while longer for optimum storage
This garlic is grown free of chemicals - leaves, horse manure and cover crops only.
This strain will keep without sprouting for 8-10 months if cured properly.
Raised beds are a great help as garlic hates wet feet.
As Christina Jo mentioned only the largest cloves will be used for the following years crop.
Outside of planting, harvesting and drying down, garlic requires no attention. It is virtually fool proof. I'll harvest fist sized bulbs every year that keep for months. Is there another crop other than winter squash or root crops that can be used fresh for so long? I grow everything under the sun in a very large garden. As much as I love tomatoes, greens and cole crops I simply could not live without garlic.

Cole_Robbie · January 8, 2015

I've never grown it. How does growing your own garlic compare to buying it from the grocery store, as far as eating it goes? I always just thought garlic was garlic, but a lot of people think that about tomatoes, too. I eat a lot of garlic, but I buy a huge 3 lb container of chopped garlic at Sam's for $11. It's so cheap that I never thought about growing my own.

Father'sDaughter · January 9, 2015

For me personally, since I started growing my own hardneck garlic, supermarket garlic seems to have some sort of funky off flavor or is often just bland. I find that hardneck has more flavor, can have a good amount of heat depending on the variety and is juicier. As a bonus, it grows scapes! Since I started making scape pesto, I haven't even bothered with basil pesto.

I've never grown a softneck, so I don't know how that would compare with the supermarket garlic which all tends to be softneck.

Not only does it require little in the way of care while growing, saving seed stock to replant is a piece of cake!

December 26, 2014	#1
ChristinaJo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: NE Texas Posts: 425	Garlic mistakes I've made The WORST mistake I've made is eating all the biggest bulbs and planting the rest..... It made the bulb size go down. Now I save the best bulbs(rule applies for all other veggies and seeds) to replant. The second is not having the knowledge of when to harvest and how to cure and store. I'm grateful for this site and the people I learn from. I may never meet y'all, but I am truly blessed.

December 26, 2014	#5
Zeedman Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Wisconsin Posts: 313	I learned not to plant garlic on the low end of the garden. It can tolerate a lot of winter cold, but wet feet in Spring will cause heavy losses. A foot of standing water qualifies as "wet feet". Provide plenty of drainage (plant on raised beds if necessary) and cover with a good layer of hay to reduce both weeds and frost heave. After digging, I dry the garlic in the garden initially, until the soil on the roots crumbles off easily. I protect it from the sun by covering it with some of the hay that it was mulched with. Once I've removed the excess soil, the garlic gets hung up to cure in an unheated shed. Last edited by Zeedman; December 26, 2014 at 10:29 PM.

December 26, 2014	#2
JJJessee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Sep 2012 Location: Abingdon, Va Posts: 184	Amen. Don't wash them, either. Lost a lot of my first crop to maggot when drying in an outdoor shed in the woods. They and onions need some truly dry preferably moving air to get them to a sweet moisture spot. This year's garlic only had about 10% damage, which I used fresh. Onions, I lost >80% :-( Yes, plant the big ones. Try French Rose, a beautiful, mild hardneck.

December 26, 2014	#3
Father'sDaughter Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: MA/NH Border Posts: 4,919	And don't leave them out in full sun when drying. I made this mistake one year and they overheated--didn't store well at all.

December 26, 2014	#4
AlittleSalt BANNED FOR LIFE Join Date: May 2014 Posts: 13,333	I can plant a clove of garlic - and it grows an entire bulb smaller than the clove I planted. So don't do anything I do. Joking aside, only plant large bulbs. I wish I could give more advice, but I am just learning myself.

December 26, 2014	#7
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Treat the garlic as you would a new born baby after is is pulled. It bruises easily. Worth

December 26, 2014	#8
jmsieglaff Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Southern WI Posts: 2,742	Not planting enough! It always goes fast in our house.

January 4, 2015	#9
ChristinaJo Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: NE Texas Posts: 425	I grow Rose de Lautrec and Rose de Violette from France. That's why I could kick myself for eating the bigger cloves. I am hoping they'll size up again. Is the French Rose the same thing or another variety?

January 5, 2015	#12
peppero Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2009 Location: selmer, tn Posts: 2,944	I think I planted my first garlic from store bought stuff and added to it over a period of time. The parents of a former high school student passed away and they had an established place for garlic that was huge. He told me to get all I wanted and I got quite a bit and ended giving starts to a lot of people. I really enjoy the harvest each year and leave quite a bit in the ground and it just keeps on producing and I just keep on enjoying it and giving it away. Wonderful stuff. jon

January 8, 2015	#13
bjbebs Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2014 Location: illinois Posts: 281	I've grown and marketed the same garlic strain for 30 years. I live in central Illinois. Just a few observations that may help someone. Plant out Sept 10- Oct 10 [2-4 inches deep] Mulch lightly with mowed leaves As plants emerge add more leaves Tops will appear to go dormant sometime in Dec Roots will continue to grow until ground freezes hard Garlic will come out of dormancy in March Scapes will begin to show in early June [snap or cut these off as they grow] Garlic must be harvested during a dry spell [usually around July 10] Dry off the ground, in the shade and under cover After 3 weeks, clean up the plant and cut neck to an inch or so The plant still needs to cure a while longer for optimum storage This garlic is grown free of chemicals - leaves, horse manure and cover crops only. This strain will keep without sprouting for 8-10 months if cured properly. Raised beds are a great help as garlic hates wet feet. As Christina Jo mentioned only the largest cloves will be used for the following years crop. Outside of planting, harvesting and drying down, garlic requires no attention. It is virtually fool proof. I'll harvest fist sized bulbs every year that keep for months. Is there another crop other than winter squash or root crops that can be used fresh for so long? I grow everything under the sun in a very large garden. As much as I love tomatoes, greens and cole crops I simply could not live without garlic.

January 8, 2015	#14
Cole_Robbie Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: Illinois, zone 6 Posts: 8,407	I've never grown it. How does growing your own garlic compare to buying it from the grocery store, as far as eating it goes? I always just thought garlic was garlic, but a lot of people think that about tomatoes, too. I eat a lot of garlic, but I buy a huge 3 lb container of chopped garlic at Sam's for $11. It's so cheap that I never thought about growing my own.

January 9, 2015	#15
Father'sDaughter Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: MA/NH Border Posts: 4,919	For me personally, since I started growing my own hardneck garlic, supermarket garlic seems to have some sort of funky off flavor or is often just bland. I find that hardneck has more flavor, can have a good amount of heat depending on the variety and is juicier. As a bonus, it grows scapes! Since I started making scape pesto, I haven't even bothered with basil pesto. I've never grown a softneck, so I don't know how that would compare with the supermarket garlic which all tends to be softneck. Not only does it require little in the way of care while growing, saving seed stock to replant is a piece of cake!