Everyones Garlic update Please!

[speedster7926]

I'm in zone 8 can I plant garlic now or would that be pointless?

[DoubleDogFarm]

I'm in zone 8 can I plant garlic now or would that be pointless?

They also have me at zone 8.

I'm not sure it would be pointless, but I'm thinking the bulbs won't be vary large.

Eric

[DoubleDogFarm]

Ok, It's time again. Garlic updates please.

[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/DSC03401.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/DSC03401-1.jpg[/img]

I did more line trimming today and used the mulch for the garlic. Trying to keep up with the weeds, but the weeds are winning.

Eric

[sheeshshe]

Mine is doing OK I Think We've had nothing but rain for a month now, but they're still kciking. they're probably 8-10" tall? they seem to be stuck at that height... I hope they make garlic and it isn't a waste of time I hope I hope!

[hendi_alex]

Our temperatures are well ahead of an average year, with many days in the upper 80's and 90's so far. Supposed to be above 90 for the next week. So the garlic plants are turning brown very quickly and this past week most were harvested. Only have a few left in the ground, but will harvest them next week. Bulbs are generally not as big as last year, but considering the quick onset of high temperatures, I'm surprised the the bulbs got as big as they did. Should have more than enough garlic to last until next year. Will likely save most all of the big bulbs to plant for next year's crop.

[applestar]

A challenge with such an early harvest maybe preserving the larger cloves until planting time. What is your strategy?

[DoubleDogFarm]

I recommend you leave them as bulbs, not cloves. I left mine in a wood filling cabinet all winter. Basically cool and dark. I almost screwed up and sold all the garlic at the Farmers Market.


Eric

[hendi_alex]

We can plant here in October. The bulbs are still in great shape at that time. And I do keep next year's seed bulbs undisturbed except sometimes I'll pull and save an especially large clove from a bulb that we are using. Those have always lasted well until planting as well. I'm going to simplify things a bit this year by combining all of my bulbs of different varieties. They will graded into large bulb/small bulb and only the larger bulbs will get selected for next year crop. For our uses, I don't notice any difference between one variety and another, though the keeping qualities of some of the varieties do tend to differ. That shouldn't be an issue this year however as we will not push the limits of storing the fresh cloves. We will eat the garlic fresh until there is a noticeable decline in the texture/oiliness of the cloves. At that time we will switch to our store that will have been minced, covered in olive oil, and frozen. Year before last we stretched our use of stored fresh garlic from season to season, but the garlic was not very good quality for the last two or three months. This year I started harvesting immature garlic during the last two or three months prior to harvest, and that worked well as both the tops and the immature bulbs give a good garlic flavor. So next year we will over plant to provide scallion like immature bulbs in the early to mid spring, and will have minced frozen to try as well. Those combined strategies should provide us with good quality garlic year round.

[TZ -OH6]

Scapes just started emerging a couple of days ago and my shallots put up flower stalks. Our spring was relatively warm, but wet, which is why I think the alliums are maturing so fast. There is quite a bit of leaf binding in the Chesnok, which might be due to the weather combinations. I can certainly tell where the transition from nitrogen ammended compost to tilled in leaves was due to the slight nitrogen deficiency vs strong growth within the plot.

[DoubleDogFarm]

TZ, I have never grown shallots. Is the flower stock ruining your harvest?


Here's an updated picture of my Music garlic. Taken this morning. No scapes, but still nice and green.
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/DSC03426.jpg[/img]

Eric

[TZ -OH6]

The flowers don't show up on all shallot clumps and not all of the bulbs in the clumps they do show on. I'll have to take another look but I think that maybe they only come up from the center of the original planted bulb rather than the "pups".

[applestar]

Two of my Music are starting their second loop. Planning on harvesting those scapes tomorrow morning.

[DoubleDogFarm]

Two of my Music are starting their second loop. Planning on harvesting those scapes tomorrow morning.

Don't let them e-scape!

Eric

[gixxerific]

My Music and Chesnok have been scaping for a while. Not E-Scaping but just Scaping.

Some of them are on their second loop. I did cut a bunch out the other day and left some for later. I think I may leave a few go the distance just to see what is going on.

I CAN'T WAIT FOR FRESH GARLIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[DoubleDogFarm]

Have you done any snooping? Any size to them?

Eric

[TZ -OH6]

I took a closer look at the shallots. The flowring/bolting is pretty random. A couple of bunches had more than two sets of leaves bolting the rest only had one. The majority of clumps don't have any.

My garlic is getting yellow/dead leaf tips. The soil is starting to dry from lack of rain but there should still be plenty of moisture. A couple of days in the 90s didn't help.

[gixxerific]

Have you done any snooping? Any size to them?

Eric

Not yet. Maybe I should I would like to see myself. The plants are going like mad so I'm hoping for a bumper crop. But with my luck I will end up with tiny bulbs.

[DoubleDogFarm]

June 30th 2011

So here we are the last day of June. Just a quick update with photos. I did a little snooping. [img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/GarlicJune29th2011003.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/GarlicJune29th2011004.jpg[/img]
Looks like they are varying in size. The leaf tips are yellowing more and more each day. Dono (gix) maybe showing me up this year.
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20Vegetable%20Garden%20plants/GarlicJune29th2011002.jpg[/img]

How about some updates.
Eric

[gixxerific]

I sure don't want to show you up my friend but that would give me some encouragement and pride in my crop. Knowing how you garden.

Garlic curing for a week on Fri. I hope I didn't cook them in the sun they were out in the garden for a while when I was harvesting with taking breaks and all. It was very hot and sunny that day.

[img]https://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/gixxerific/Gardening/DSC05286.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i272.photobucket.com/albums/jj185/gixxerific/Gardening/DSC05287.jpg[/img]

[jal_ut]

Harvest already?! My hardneck is just now sending out scapes.

[Father's Daughter]

Harvested yesterday--a full three weeks ahead of last year! I ended up with only seven or eight that aren't fit for long term storage, and all are a good size.

[DoubleDogFarm]

Father's Daughter,

That sound really good. Can you post a picture?

Eric

[Father's Daughter]

I'm really bad at remembering to take pictures, but I did think to snap one of the last bunch before moving it in to the basement. This is a second year crop grown from seed stock saved from last year. I was very picky when selecting my seed stock, so had a lot fewer runts and only one that didn't divide into cloves. I would have left it a couple of more days, but this past weekend was the only time I had to harvest all 120 heads and get them tucked away for curing.

I hope everyone else has a good harvest! (this is my first attempt at posting a picture, so I hope I've done it right!)

[img]https://i1220.photobucket.com/albums/dd457/Ginamcd63/Snapbucket/B0ACC6D1-orig.jpg[/img]

[soil]

those are grown from bulbils?

[Father's Daughter]

those are grown from bulbils?

Nope, from full heads. I bought a couple of pounds each of music and German white from some garlic farmers in the fall of 2009 and used it for planting stock. Last year I kept about half my harvest for eating and re-planted the rest, choosing only the biggest and best cloves. For this fall's planting I'm hoping to add a couple more varieties.

[TZ -OH6]

I dug my garlic today and it's a sad day in Mudville . Chesnok Red mostly the size of golfballs, but I did get about 25% big bulbs with my Klaver so I can replant that.

[gixxerific]

Bought some tator sacks today will be bagging tomorrow. Can't wait till next year, or should I say a few months for more planting. Well than next year for harvesting I will get a new variety.

Suggestions welcome. This year it was Chesnok Red and Music.

[Ladybug027]

Thanks for the inspiration!
With all this talk about Garlic, along with my love for garlic, roasted yum yum yum. I am going to plant some this fall. I ordered a pound of Music since it is a hardy easy type to grow from what I read, plus I seen some Califorinia Soft neck bulbis at a local nursery on clearence that I am not sure about condition but couldn't resist giving them a try.

[orgoveg]

This was my second attempt at growing garlic. The first year, I planted in spring. This time, I planted in fall but I seem to have chosen a variety not suited for a northern climate. These were just from the grocery store labeled "product of Mexico". Someone astutely pointed out that these are probably a variety only suited for the south. Nonetheless, I think I did okay. At least they bulbed for me. After they had fallen over and laid on the ground for a couple of weeks looking sickly, I couldn't wait any longer. One of them actually had a scape. It was one which had grown 3 stems and the scape was from one separate little clove attached to the main bulb. I'm holding the plant folded in half in the photo.

[img]https://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh194/abaction/garlicrszd.jpg[/img]

[img]https://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh194/abaction/scape1rszd.jpg[/img]

[Father's Daughter]

If anyone else feels inspired to try growing garlic next year or wants to add a new variety, don't wait too long to buy your seed stock! I learned the hard way that garlic farms typically start taking pre-orders in late July or early august, and they often sell out very quickly.

[gixxerific]

If anyone else feels inspired to try growing garlic next year or wants to add a new variety, don't wait too long to buy your seed stock! I learned the hard way that garlic farms typically start taking pre-orders in late July or early august, and they often sell out very quickly.

True that is why I didn't plant any the 2 fall's before, I waited to late and EVERYBODY was sold out.

[cherishedtiger]

I think I planted mine too late, and picked too early. They are all out of the ground and dried now.
Want to do it again this fall, but would like to have a dedicated bed for them. As to not take up so much room of the main planting area and making me late to plant everything else.
We will have to see!

[Father's Daughter]

I went as far as adding a second bed this year so I could grow both garlic and other veggies. In the bed I just pulled the garlic out of, I have brussel sprout, broccoli and fennel seedling going in soon, along with spinach, beets, radishes and carrots for fall crops. I have all my tomatoes, eggplants, peppers, zukes and cukes in the new bed, and that's were next year's garlic crop will be planted in mid-October. I won't fill the whole 24 foot bed with garlic, so I'll have room for the beans, herbs, and a few spring crops in there as well. With enough space, a long enough growing season, and little planning, it all works out!

[DoubleDogFarm]

Dono,

[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20produce/GarlicMusicJuly22nd2011008.jpg[/img]

I decided to pull my Music garlic today. What a disappointment.

I thought I prepped the soil well. Mulched and watered. The soil was very hard. I had to use a garden fork to harvest. What a weed patch.

[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20produce/GarlicMusicJuly22nd2011002.jpg[/img]

This October, different bed, better soil prep and heavier mulch. I also would like to try another variety.

Oh, before I forget, here is the rest of my harvest.
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20produce/GarlicMusicJuly22nd2011007.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20produce/GarlicMusicJuly22nd2011011.jpg[/img]
[img]https://i67.photobucket.com/albums/h300/eric_wa/1%20Double%20Dog%20Farm%20produce/GarlicMusicJuly22nd2011009.jpg[/img]

Anyone want to trade garlic?????????

Eric

[gixxerific]

What do you mean disappointment. I only see a few gnarly ones, I had a few as well but all in all you got a nice bunch of garlic there.

I would trade but I only saved about 10 - 15 bulbs for planting. I want to order some this weekend. Just got to find out what I want.

[TZ -OH6]

My Chesnok turned out like your Music so I'm looking to replace it. I have enough big seed Klaver for a small trade. 5-6 big huge cloves per bulb with big thick tasty scapes. PM me.

[gixxerific]

Now I would be up for a trade I'm just saying I wouldn't have that many to trade with.

This is my first year with good garlic and we all know how fast your stores can grow if you do it right.

Also after I have given away plenty put some aside for planting along with the roughly 10 bulbs upstairs that were put in the use first pile. I still have a half gallon or bigger basket filled to the brim with bulbs, so I probably have more than I think.

I have Chesnok Red and Music.

[DoubleDogFarm]

I was trying to pull Dono's leg. I couldn't let him out do me in garlic. The ground did get vary hard and covered with weeds, but still a descent harvest.

Eric

[soil]

our garlic didn't do as good as the last few years either(that's to be expected when compared to two AMAZING garlic years), but there is still enough garlic to eat until next year and enough to plant along with the thousand+ bulbils I planted. I always have to water my garlic more than the other beds. the thicker mulch soaks up a lot of the initial water leaving the soil underneath dry if you water lightly.

I think like you it was just the spot it was in.

[DoubleDogFarm]

Soil,

Have any to trade?

Eric