Filaree Farms Garlic

[SueCT]

As I mentioned in a previous post, I recently placed an order for seed garlic with Filaree farms because they were recommended here. I let them know in the comments section that I was looking for the largest possible bulbs (isn't everyone, though, lol?). I just received a receipt from them with the following message:

"When we begin shipping in mid-September, we ship in the order
that we received orders, starting with those placed in late January.
Ordering early will ensure an earlier ship group and our largest
available bulbs. We won't ship any bulbs less than 1.75" diameter
regardless of when an order is placed."

Can anyone tell me when you placed your orders with them and if you got nice large bulbs? While I thought ordering 2 months before they start shipping would be early enough, apparently that might not be the case. I really would be disappointed with 1 3/4" bulbs, I got a few from my own garden that were larger than that. If I used them for planting, though, I would not have much of a crop to use this fall and winter. I am considering cancelling my order because just ordering 1/2 lb of each of 2 varieties, and 1/4 lb of a third variety, it came to almost 50.00 (49.00 to be exact) and for that I expect nice large bulbs not bulbs smaller than what I already have. Its a lot of money for garlic, but worth it if it started me off with a nice crop of large bulbs for future years that I could keep going.

So, am I so late I am likely to get their smallest bulbs? If people start ordering 10 months before planting time, I feel like I already missed the boat. But I will reconsider if your experiences have been getting nice large seed stock when ordering only a couple of months before shipping starts. Otherwise, I will be going back to Agway where I can pick out my own bulbs and just buy a larger quantity and only use the largest cloves.

[PhilaGardener]

I always am amazed how garlic vendors seem to sell out every year. They may plan it that way so they don't have stock on hand that would go bad and by growing quality rather than quantity.

My best strains were acquired locally at farmers markets. I have had less luck with material from the Pacific NW, maybe because their growing conditions are so different from mine.

FF does have a good reputation (although I have not ordered from them) - I would either give them a try and see how things turn out, or cancel and re-place your order in a few months for the 2017 shipping season (to get at the start of that line) if you feel strongly about that.

[My Foot Smells]

Probably a general disclaimer, which they found necessary in attempts to try and please the public. That being said, I ordered some garlic from burpee one year and it was rather puny and did not produce big bulbs. So I think your query has merit.

In addition, I find that "most" of these places actually answer their phone and do not have a 12 step automated labyrinth you have to navigate. Very helpful people who are willing to give you a more direct answer.

I do find it odd that they deliver first come, first serve method. You probably drop your garlic in Sept., whereas, I plant garlic mid Oct. So, imo, I would think zone preference would be more applicable.

Out of curiosity, what size bulb would you find pleasing? I plan on trying some creole garlic this year and can utilize the information for my request. thx

Additional thought: Wouldn't the CLOVE size be of more importance? Some bulbs have a large number of cloves, while others distribute 8 or so. So a 2" bulb with only 8 cloves sounds suitable, IDK.

[Father'sDaughter]

From what I've seen on other seller's sites, it seems that seed garlic comes in two grades -- medium and large. Here is a statement I found on one farm's website that sells to farmers and larger scale growers (they have a 10 pound minimum order policy) --

"We grade seed garlic in two sizes: 2" and 1.75". Most growers specify 2" however we and many other professional growers utilize 1.75" as there are naturally more cloves / pound and as the cloves contain all the DNA to make large bulbs will do so in good soil."

If you are concerned, then give Filaree Farms a call and see what they have to say.

I took a chance this year and put an order in with Six Circle Farms. I didn't find any online reviews, but hey seem to be well known in their area (lots of press coverage) and their pricing is in the $12-14 per pound range. They also start shipping in mid-September which seems to be typical for our part of the country since we're not planting until October.

[My Foot Smells]

I stand corrected. With the exception of the extreme northern climates, most garlic can be planted in October. So "zone preference" comment was incorrect.

Guess I just "assumed" that conn. (not going to try and spell) would drop earlier than 7b.

[clkeiper]

" I am considering cancelling my order because just ordering 1/2 lb of each of 2 varieties, and 1/4 lb of a third variety, it came to almost 50.00 (49.00 to be exact) and for that I expect nice large bulbs not bulbs smaller than what I already have. Its a lot of money for garlic,....."


No way Can you really generate enough of a harvest to justify that investment for the "seed"? Do you eat 50.00 worth of garlic? is it hard neck? that only stores for a short time. I slice mine and dry what I am not replanting, otherwise by Dec there is nothing but husks left in the basket. soft neck stores for a long while.

I also suggest hitting up local farmers markets or check on craigslist for garlic bulbs. Then you can see what you are getting.
This year I planted several varieties, one was Music, one was german white ( or some such name) and one was roja?, most I bought at Berlin Seed in Berlin Ohio, and a no name that didn't survive here. Some bulbs were big some were not so big. No rain all Summer either. Next year I will run a drip tape for that, too. Weather plays a big part in the formation, too, not just the size of cloves you start with.

this is a bout 10' worth of harvest all sizes. I am a bit late getting it out of the ground. It is hot and dry here and the ground is like concrete. I am prying with my digging fork to get out each new bulb...

100_2304.JPG

This is the size difference in this small section. a few really nice ones but most are small to middlin'. I THINK this is the German White? variety. I didn't mark the row.
100_2305.JPG

this is elephant garlic. The little brown "nut" is the "seed" which I collect from the mature bulbs as I harvest, which I then plant for the first year "bulb" which grows into the middles size clove you see, a single clove... I replant this to harvest (hopefully) the next year. which is the bulb on the far right. Making elephant garlic a 3 year project for me.
100_2306.JPG

[Kazedwards]

Originally Posted by SueCT

As I mentioned in a previous post, I recently placed an order for seed garlic with Filaree farms because they were recommended here. I let them know in the comments section that I was looking for the largest possible bulbs (isn't everyone, though, lol?). I just received a receipt from them with the following message:



"When we begin shipping in mid-September, we ship in the order

that we received orders, starting with those placed in late January.

Ordering early will ensure an earlier ship group and our largest

available bulbs. We won't ship any bulbs less than 1.75" diameter

regardless of when an order is placed."



Can anyone tell me when you placed your orders with them and if you got nice large bulbs? While I thought ordering 2 months before they start shipping would be early enough, apparently that might not be the case. I really would be disappointed with 1 3/4" bulbs, I got a few from my own garden that were larger than that. If I used them for planting, though, I would not have much of a crop to use this fall and winter. I am considering cancelling my order because just ordering 1/2 lb of each of 2 varieties, and 1/4 lb of a third variety, it came to almost 50.00 (49.00 to be exact) and for that I expect nice large bulbs not bulbs smaller than what I already have. Its a lot of money for garlic, but worth it if it started me off with a nice crop of large bulbs for future years that I could keep going.



So, am I so late I am likely to get their smallest bulbs? If people start ordering 10 months before planting time, I feel like I already missed the boat. But I will reconsider if your experiences have been getting nice large seed stock when ordering only a couple of months before shipping starts. Otherwise, I will be going back to Agway where I can pick out my own bulbs and just buy a larger quantity and only use the largest cloves.

I wouldn't let bulb size stop me. That being said I normally trade bulbils and don't typically buy garlic. Also from my understanding bulb size doesn't matter as oppose to clove size. So a small bulb with 3 large cloves and 4 small will do better than a large bulb with 10 small cloves. Someone above also said that you get more cloves per pound with small bulbs which equals more plant. More plants bigger harvest. Also any garlic you buy will take a few years to adjust to your climate and growing culture. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with your garlic this year bought or not!


-Zach

[clkeiper]

Originally Posted by Kazedwards

I wouldn't let bulb size stop me. That being said I normally trade bulbils and don't typically buy garlic. Also from my understanding bulb size doesn't matter as oppose to clove size. So a small bulb with 3 large cloves and 4 small will do better than a large bulb with 10 small cloves. Someone above also said that you get more cloves per pound with small bulbs which equals more plant. More plants bigger harvest. Also any garlic you buy will take a few years to adjust to your climate and growing culture. Just my 2 cents. Good luck with your garlic this year bought or not!


-Zach

Yep, I agree. If you look at the bulb of garlic in the middle of the middles picture you will see it is broken, I broke it as I dug it...oops! it was a rather narrow bulb but it has 4 really nice cloves. I plan to replant this one.

[SueCT]

This is hard neck garlic. No, I would not eat enough garlic to get the money back in one year, it would be an investment to try to get better, larger bulbs that would keep me going in future years. This years harvest was only fair, my first year growing it. I would consider 2" bulbs and up acceptable. I did not have a great harvest at all and got some that size, but not enough to plant and eat. I had many small bulbs that I was not happy with. The smaller bulbs also had smaller cloves. So I would not want to replant those. On my previous post no one seemed to know if it was bulb size or clove size that determined the size of the offspring, or both. I strongly suspect it is both and that I would get larger bulbs if I used large cloves from large bulbs. Last fall I planted all the cloves, large and small, and received a very mixed lot of sizes when they grew out, from 2.25-2.5 inches down to 1". I won't plant the smaller cloves again. Also, if you get more cloves per pound with smaller bulbs then you are also getting smaller cloves, which apparently gives you smaller bulbs later. Its like buying shrimp, lol, the more per pound you get, the smaller they are. But then if they contain all the DNA to make large bulbs, then clove size doesn't really matter, which is not the consensus of opinions I have received here.

[clkeiper]

Here is the page from their catalog. It is an Amish place so no internet, I don't think, but they do do phone orders.

100_2309.JPG

[Gardadore]

Just remember that whatever you order if you save the largest cloves from each bulb to plant you will eventually generate good sized garlic in years to come. Often I can save only one large clove from a bulb to set aside. I then cook with the rest. Last year I was fortunate to find a vendor at a local Garlic Festival who sold super large German White. They were bigger than Musik, which should be a large one. He also had huge red garlic. They produced fantastic specimens despite the heat and dryness this year. I will keep setting aside the largest cloves as I use the bulbs so I have enough for Oct. Here we plant on Columbus weekend. Will be interested to hear how you fared with Filaree.

[brownrexx]

Another good company is getgarlic.com

It is a small family run company and they sell both organic and non organic garlic. Actually it is raised the same but the organic stuff is "certified'.

Anyway I bought some nice German Porcelain hardnecks last year and they grew really nicely and gave me the larger cloves that I had been hoping for. They have a $10 coupon on a $50 order right now if anyone is interested.

https://www.getgarlic.com/save-10-pc...c3b9b03c8d04f0

[Worth1]

Originally Posted by clkeiper

" I am considering cancelling my order because just ordering 1/2 lb of each of 2 varieties, and 1/4 lb of a third variety, it came to almost 50.00 (49.00 to be exact) and for that I expect nice large bulbs not bulbs smaller than what I already have. Its a lot of money for garlic,....."


No way Can you really generate enough of a harvest to justify that investment for the "seed"? Do you eat 50.00 worth of garlic? is it hard neck? that only stores for a short time. I slice mine and dry what I am not replanting, otherwise by Dec there is nothing but husks left in the basket. soft neck stores for a long while.

I also suggest hitting up local farmers markets or check on craigslist for garlic bulbs. Then you can see what you are getting.
This year I planted several varieties, one was Music, one was german white ( or some such name) and one was roja?, most I bought at Berlin Seed in Berlin Ohio, and a no name that didn't survive here. Some bulbs were big some were not so big. No rain all Summer either. Next year I will run a drip tape for that, too. Weather plays a big part in the formation, too, not just the size of cloves you start with.

this is a bout 10' worth of harvest all sizes. I am a bit late getting it out of the ground. It is hot and dry here and the ground is like concrete. I am prying with my digging fork to get out each new bulb...

Attachment 65308

This is the size difference in this small section. a few really nice ones but most are small to middlin'. I THINK this is the German White? variety. I didn't mark the row.
Attachment 65309

this is elephant garlic. The little brown "nut" is the "seed" which I collect from the mature bulbs as I harvest, which I then plant for the first year "bulb" which grows into the middles size clove you see, a single clove... I replant this to harvest (hopefully) the next year. which is the bulb on the far right. Making elephant garlic a 3 year project for me.
Attachment 65310

Carolyn that is exactly how you do it.
It is like raising cattle you are building a herd of garlic.

Worth

[SueCT]

I cancelled my order with Filaree. They said the music and Chesnok Red would probably be OK, but the Northern White would probably b 1.75" because most the stock was already spoken for. That was the one I can't get or haven't seen locally, lol. I will see what I find locally and maybe think about ordering some in January for next year. Depends on what I find. The problem is I would have to order before I even see what comes out of the garden next season and what I have to plant for the following year. Ordering 10 months in advance is kinda crazy. I don't know if I need any until I see my own harvest.

[Father'sDaughter]

I go with the larger clove theory, so when I break my heads at planting time, I end up with a pile of smaller cloves most of which I peel, slice and dry for garlic powder, and some is roasted for our annual garlic and Italian bread feast.

The heads I don't break for planting I leave hanging in the basement still attached to their stalk and I've had it keep well into April this way. When I used to trim them and put them in a basket or onion bag, they were barely usable by December and dried up shells by January. I do the same thing with my onions and shallots now and they keep much longer as well.

New seed stock is not cheap, but if you don't have to start from scratch each year you eventually reach a payback point. Plus with the hardnecks if you are a scape lover, you'll make your money back even faster -- I've seen bunches of 10-12 scrawny scapes selling for as much as $3-4 around here.

This past year was a bad one between the mild winter during which mine sprouted and was frost killed twice followed by a very wet June. So this year is another small investment year for me.