Planting, Harvesting and Storing Garlic
We have all heard how garlic is so good for us. Crushed garlic contains all kinds of minerals such as magnesium, potassium, trace minerals (which are very lacking in our diets), zinc, calcium, iron as well as vitamins A, B, C, and E, enzymes, and 17 amino acids and I know I'm forgetting others.
When we think of garlic, Italian food is probably the food we associate with garlic the most but it is delicious in many things we cook, not just Italian food. In fact, garlic can enhance almost any vegetable or meat dish. Some of my favorites that comes to mind is Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Garlic-Rosemary Mushrooms and Garlic White Bean Dip. There are so many, many more!
If you are a beginner at gardening and want to start small, starting with garlic is very easy, even if just a container on your back patio and the chances are excellent you will have success. So let's get started.
Planting Garlic
Most accomplished gardeners plant their garlic in the late fall and let nature take it's course. By that, I mean, the garlic will start growing when conditions are ideal, whereas, if the garlic is dependent on when we decide to plant it, we may cut that growing time short. The longer the growing time the larger the garlic and the more flaverful the garlic. If you decide to plant in the fall, you can plant it about 6 weeks before the ground typically freezes. In the midwest, that is usually in October. You do want to mulch your garlic for the winter and when new shoot are coming up in the spring, move the mulch.
If you plant in the Spring plant as soon as the ground is workable, which is typcially in late February or March.
Your soil should be well draining, kept free of weeds and in a sunny location. Do not plant in the same spot you planted onions for two years as garlic is suceptible to onion diseases.
Do not use grocery store garlic as it has not been kept in ideal temperatures. Go to your local garden center and purchase your garlic there or from a seed company. Cultivars that do well are Music, German White and Polish Softneck.
Separate the cloves just before planting and plant 2 to 4 inches deep and at least 4 inches apart. Larger cloves produce larger bulbs . Plant with the root plate down and pointed end facing up. Garlic does most of it's growth in March through May so be sure you provide water during that time, if rainfall is not providing 1-2 inches per week. When you know it is getting close to harvest time, stop watering.
Now that I told you the correct way to plant your garlic, I have to confess, normally, I am a very lazy gardener not to mention I really don't have a garden. In fact, I don't consider myself a gardener at all. Everything I've learned was from my brother and sister-in-law (they grow a huge organic vegetable garden every year) or from my dear sister (whom this Garden Center is dedicated) and from reading my dozens of gardening books and magazines but I really don't always practice what they preach. My backyard still needs a lot of work so a few years back, I just tucked a few cloves in with the flowers and forgot about them. Each year I just dig up what I need and let the rest go to seed. Yes, lately I've been getting very tiny bulbs so might be time to go purchase some new stock. Still, my tiny little cloves of garlic are very delicious.
Garlic Container GardeningYou need a large pot to grow container garlic. When purchasing a pot, try to find one that is about the size of a painters bucket or use a painters bucket. Be sure your container has plenty of drainage holes. Put the container in a sunny spot. The key to garlic in containers is making sure the cloves don't get to wet and rot. You need a light soil mixture (ask your garden center) that has plenty of pearlite or vermiculite. Leave about two inches at the top without soil. Plant with the pointy side up and the root side down. The pointy side should be very close to the surface of the dirt with dirt just covering it. (No more than 2 inches of soil over the garlic point) Plant away from the edge of the pot and try to keep at least 4 inches between each planted clove.
If you live in a cold climate cover your garlic with mulch for the winter. Check it periodically to make sure the soil isn't too wet, especially if you have a very wet winter. You may have to pull off the mulch during the sunny days to help dry it out. When it begans to warm in the spring remove the mulch. Frost won't hurt your growing garlic. There is a chance your garlic may start to grow if you plant in the fall but it'll go dormant as the temperatures get colder so it will not really affect the outcome of the crop.
Harvesting Garlic
Garlic bulbs are usually harvested in July, after 30 to 50 percent of the leaves have died back. If you planted in the spring it maybe a bit later. Harvest during dry weather and try to dig far enough around the outside the perimeter you planted them so as not to damage the paper-like covering.Once you have unearthed your garlic, try to remove as much soil as you can without damaging the clove and then I use a mushroom brush to lightly brush off the remaining dirt and I don't worry about getting all the dirt off because I'll peel and wash them as I use them but do try to remove as much dirt as you can and if one bulb is especially dirty, feel free to remove the paper and use those first.
Garlic needs to cure before you put in storage so spread out the bulbs to dry. Many gardeners just dig them up, brush off as much dirt as they can and leave them on the ground for 2 weeks to cure. Other gardeners braid the tops and hang up-side-down in their kitchen or storage area. I don't use a lot of garlic within a year so I spread mine out on a half a dozen paper plates to cure, tops removed.
For those of you who are not a lazy gardener, like me, you may want to save a few of your largest bulbs for planting in the fall or spring or better yet, leave a few garlic plants in the garden and dig up a few weeks later to give them a bit more growing time.
Storing Garlic
The ideal storing temerature is around 32 to 40 degrees but I have stored mine in many less than ideal locations and they kept just fine. You do not want to store them in your basement because most basements are too moist. This is also true with your refridertator, way too moist. You should store in a dark dry cool place. Provided your garlic has had ample time to cure, some people say you can store in a paper bag as it provides the darkness garlic needs but I don't care for this practice.
I store my garlic in a mesh bag and it hangs in my kitchen. I just have no ideal place to store them and they are fine there for quite a long time, however, when I'm getting to the bottom of the bag, I often find they are just too dry to use.
Just find the best location you can (dark, dry, cool and with air flow)and store them in a mesh bag and you should have perfectly good garlic up to 6 months.
I have also heard you can freeze your garlic a number of ways. One way that I know of is to just toss the cloves in zip lock bags and use as needed. I have never tried this. One thing I want to stress is do not try storing them in oil unless you freeze them immediately. In fact, it isn't worth the risk of getting botulism in my opinion and there is a great risk. You have been warned.
You can also store your garlic in wine. You should use a very dry red or white wine and it should keep in the refridgerator up to 3 months. Do not leave this mixture at room temperature! Mold will grow quickly if you do.
Uses For Garlic
Eat the seeds!
Did you know you can eat all parts of the garlic plant including the seeds? Just break apart the head, give the seeds a quick rinse and sautee the seeds with just about anything your cooking.
Make a Garlic Bouquet
If you catch your garlic early before the seed heads get so heavy they bend the stem, you can tuck a few in your dry flower arrangements.
Make a garlic repellent!
Put a couple cloves with a little water in your blender and blend until mushy, strain through cheesecloth and add to one quart of water and use as needed in a spray bottle. Great for getting rid of aphids on your strawberries, tomatoes, carrots, beet and some beetles on rosebushes. Speaking of a repellent, we can't forget, wearing a garlic necklace keeps the vampires away. lol
Interesting Tid Bits
Top Five Garlic Producers- China: 75% (23 billion pounds)
- India: 4%
- Republic of Korea: 3%
- United States: 2%
- Russia: less than 2%
Zones: 3-8
Kingdom: Plantae
Division: Magnoliophyta
Class: Liliopsida
Order: Asparagales
Family: Alliaceae
Subfamily: Allioideae
Tribe: Allieae
Genus: Allium
Species: A. sativum
Binomial name:Allium sativum L.