Can someone explain garlic to me.

[jal_ut]

WinglessAngel, look for the threat titled "Advice for first time onion grower? " We just had a good discussion about onion culture.

I believe for garlic, if you want nice multi faceted bulbs, you should plant nice large cloves in the fall. Harvest the garlic in summer when the tops start to turn brown.

Save the largest cloves for planting next year for the largest bulbs. Cut the scapes off when they make one circle and eat them.

If you want nice bulbs, I will not recommend leaving it in the ground for growing next year. Nor will I recommend going for seed. Nor will I recommend planting garlic seed. (Unless you want to do it for the experiment)

[WinglessAngel]

WinglessAngel, look for the threat titled "Advice for first time onion grower? " We just had a good discussion about onion culture.

I believe for garlic, if you want nice multi faceted bulbs, you should plant nice large cloves in the fall. Harvest the garlic in summer when the tops start to turn brown.

Save the largest cloves for planting next year for the largest bulbs. Cut the scapes off when they make one circle and eat them.

If you want nice bulbs, I will not recommend leaving it in the ground for growing next year. Nor will I recommend going for seed. Nor will I recommend planting garlic seed. (Unless you want to do it for the experiment)

Good to know! Thanks, the onions I'm not so much worried about as they've gone bonkers lol. Long time no see as well. How do I go about drying the harvested garlic then for replanting the following year and I did spy earlier that store bought garlic was fine to plant? Sorry for all the q's, would I be ok trying to plant a few now as well?

[rainbowgardener]

I have always planted store bought garlic, except that last year I had so much, I saved some of my home-grown garlic to replant. So now I have the second generation of what used to be store bought.

I'm not for sure about spring planting garlic, not having done it, but I expect that by fall this year, what you would have is one big round of garlic, larger than the clove you started with, but not separated into smaller cloves.

Incidentally garlic always seems just amazing to me. OK there's a plant that grows this fleshy bulb to feed itself (that just happens to be garlic flavored, which makes sense because it helps keep pests away). That part I understand. But then the plant also produces a paper like substance and manages to wrap each bulb segment in paper!!

[WinglessAngel]

Ta, thanks for the advice! I'll just wait until fall then and find some nice bulbs from the store to start off with and start growing my own strain from the store to start and keep saving it to grow thereafter.

[TZ -OH6]

Garlic can get twisted up under mulch, especially if you use leaves, so at least check them in the spring and pull the mulch back a bit if you have too.


Scapes are the best part of early summer. Sauteed with a little butter or olive oil, they are like garlic-flavored green beans.

They can go on top of pizza too.

[WinglessAngel]

Thanks for the advice!