Garlic is forming nice bulbs!

hendi_alex · Mon May 18, 2009 10:33 am

I've tried to grow garlic before and failed miserably. Last year I ran across a site that basically says that garlic can be grown most anywhere, you just have to select the right variety. I was able to find TheGarlicStore.com where they offer selections according to best region for growing. This fall I plant 12 different varieties, six hardneck and six softneck, from two of their sample packs selected for warm growing climates. All seem to be doing very well, but some much better than others. This year we will conduct taste tests and that info plus vigor and production observations will lead to the selections which will be grown next year. I am very, very pleased with the outcome so far. This next info was posted under a separate thread, but wanted it to appear on this forum as well.

Garlic is making nice bulbs now! Plants still are very green, so there should be some very nice bulbs for harvest in a month or so. These in the photos are about three inches in diameter.

'Xian'
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2305/3541949799_6564753fb8.jpg[/img]

'Early Red'
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2141/3542757114_7dc020efc0.jpg[/img]

'Tuscan'
[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3589/3542757500_bb9b689583.jpg[/img]

'Tuscan' with top growth.
[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3646/3542758010_e1f75a6231.jpg[/img]

BrianSkilton · Mon May 18, 2009 3:45 pm

Alex thats great! I've tried a few from the supermarket but they don't seem to work very well. Which garlic variety do you have the most success with. I guess it takes awhile since they start bulbing when they are stressed, like when its too hot etc. Anyway looks like they formed some nice bulbs.

I'll check out that site you posted...

!potatoes! · Mon May 18, 2009 3:54 pm

yeah, unless you're in californ, most supermarket garlics won't work that well.

I was talking to a primarily-garlic farmer a couple years ago, he said he started with 45 varieties from worldwide when he started out, and has whittled it down to the 8 or so that really performed well for him.

hendi_alex · Mon May 18, 2009 4:15 pm

Nick, most all are doing well. Some have better top growth than others but then some of the garlic is a bigger variety than the others. I had only one variety most of which rotted in the ground, with only two or three cloves sending up top growth. These three varieties in the photos are doing great, but others are as well. As I posted above, this is a first year experiment, so will not know for a while which plants make the cut. Will judge based upon vigor, yield, and flavor.

Just make sure that you buy varieties that are suitable for your zone. I'm in zone 8 so bought warm climate varieties. TheGarlicStore.com makes selecting appropriate varieties very easy. But make sure that you order early, like spring or early summer. They will send the bulbs in early fall after their harvest, but many varieties will have been sold out before they actually start shipping.

BrianSkilton · Tue May 19, 2009 1:47 am

Thanks guys, very helpful. When should I plant garlic in South Dakota? Just curious.

applestar · Tue May 19, 2009 6:47 am

I've heard you plant garlic around the same time when you plant tulips and other spring flowering bulbs, which in my 6b area is Columbus Day~Hallowe'en.

hendi_alex · Tue May 19, 2009 8:12 am

The garlicstore.com has a very good resource called 'How to Grow Garlic' on their web site. Here is one comment about planting times with link to the full text below.

"On the High Plains, we like to get going by mid-September, since snow by the end of September is not at all that rare here. Further east and south, late September and into October will generally do."

https://thegarlicstore.com/ZenCart/index.php?main_page=page&id=5&chapter=0&zenid=fdqjkvdadbul0b7a6e18hvmf84

somegeek · Tue May 19, 2009 10:40 am

Thanks for sharing pics! I've not seen garlic being grown before. We want to plant some this coming fall for next year.

somegeek

hendi_alex · Tue May 19, 2009 11:03 am

Just a month ago I dug around the bulbs and they were as straight as early spring onions. They have really begun to swell since then.

One adjustment that I'll make next year. This year the plants were placed around two outer sides of some block areas and some 4 x 4 raised bed areas. The reason was that spring crops could be planted in the inner area of the beds while the garlic matures. Problem is, the garlic comes off late enough that it is in the way of some other crops like a few tomato plants. Next year I'll construct some new raised beds that will be dedicated to the garlic which will be planted planted about 6-8 inches apart in the full block. I may interplant with some suitable crop like spinach or arugala in the spring, and then will use the beds to plant fall crops, which will be harvested before it is time to replant the garlic in October or November. Also, I will probably make an adjustment on the number of garlic cloves planted. This year we have about 100 plants and will make an adjustment on that based upon this year's use and how long the cloves will hold up.

One thing to consider, that I learned from the garlicstore.com site, is that garlic varieties differ widely in their size, their time of maturity, and their storage life. So it makes sense to grow several varieties to give some variety and to prolong the availability of your fresh garlic in the kitchen.

hendi_alex · Fri May 22, 2009 5:54 pm

Harvested my first garlic bulb today, Xian. Bulb is slightly over 3 inches in diameter. Needless to say, I'm absolutely delighted with this garlic planting experiment this year. Hope the flavor and quality are equal to the bulb production.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3340/3555310834_9c3d0759c0.jpg[/img]

hendi_alex · Wed May 27, 2009 8:46 am

Xian crop is harvested. Came from one bulb's worth of cloves planted this past fall. These bulbs range from 2.5 inches to about 3.25 inches in diameter. Have one or two other varieties that appear to be ready. Will consider pulling them today.

[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3609/3569426079_7a5289fb15.jpg[/img]

somegeek · Wed May 27, 2009 11:00 am

Very nice - how long can you store these before using?

somegeek

hendi_alex · Wed May 27, 2009 11:15 am

Storage time varies depending upson storage conditions and variety. Soft necks store longer than hard necks in general. Some should last six to eight months or longer. Thegarlicstore.com is a great source of info, and offers varieties selected to grow well in various regions of the country. The site seems to be down right now, hopefully back up soon.

hendi_alex · Wed May 27, 2009 11:26 am

The weather has been very wet. It is best to harvest garlic during a dry spell, but mine looks ready and I'm afraid the wet weather may encourage maggots or disease, so pulled the most ready bulbs today. Each of these groups of garlic were grown from the cloves of a single bulb. Bulb size for a given variety is dependent upon size of clove planted. That is why they suggest saving the biggest and the best cloves for planting next year's crop. My different varieties were planted in different soils, so comparison of one variety to another will have only limited usefulness.

Susanville: Smaller bulbs, long storage life.
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2469/3570540676_ac4c151b38.jpg[/img]

Morado Gigante: Medium size compared to some of the others, long storage life.
[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3662/3569727697_f51d500779.jpg[/img]

California Early: Stores well
[img]https://farm4.static.flickr.com/3618/3570539394_4a69711592.jpg[/img]

Polish White
[img]https://farm3.static.flickr.com/2449/3569726617_5e6c99c9fc.jpg[/img]