Growing Garlic – Fall Planting

Fall is the best time to plant garlic—a good three weeks prior to the ground freezing, so the roots have a chance to develop, but not poke thru the surface before winter. As a raised bed gardener, I reserve a new spot every fall after removing all the summer garden debris and amending my soil with compost for the winter. Garlic is a species in the onion genus-Allium—and is closely related to onions, shallots, leeks, and chives. These plants require at least two years if not more between successive plantings to allow the soil to recover. Garlic plants are usually hardy and not affected by many pests or diseases. They do require full sun and loamy soil.

Select cloves for planting based on your preference for flavor and use. Cloves purchased from grocery stores are not a good choice. They may be varieties unsuitable for your area, and most are treated to make their shelf life longer, making them harder to grow. Find a reputable dealer and choose only clean, sound cloves. Local farmers who grow garlic are an excellent seed source. You will need to break your bulbs down, but no more than a day before planting so that the root nodules do not dry out and are able to set roots quickly. Sort the cloves and reserve the largest for planting, smaller cloves can be used in recipes. Larger cloves will yield larger bulbs at harvest time.

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With your soil amended, plant your cloves, root side down and upright. You can plant a single row or several rows with four to eight inches between plants, planting at least two inches below the surface. Mulch with a good four inches of straw or shredded leaves. If the planting area is in a windy site, lay branches over the bed to hold the straw in place.

Garlic requires fairly even watering during the growing season to insure full development of the bulb. Dying back of the leaves indicates that harvest time is nigh. At this time scale back watering. Using a flat shovel loosen the soil around a few cloves, lifting them by hand as they can bruise easily to determine if they have reached prime maturity. You want to harvest before the wrappers deteriorate or split open. To harvest, carefully lift the bulbs with a spade or garden fork. Pull the plants, carefully brush off the soil, and let them cure in an airy, shady spot for two weeks.

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The bulbs are cured and ready to store when the wrappers are dry and papery and the roots are dry. The root crown should be hard, and the cloves can be cracked apart easily. Once the garlic bulbs are dry, you can store them. Remove any dirt and trim off any roots or leaves. Keep the wrappers on but remove the dirtiest wrappers. Bulbs should be stored in a cool, dark, dry place, and will keep in the same way for several months. The flavor will increase as the bulbs are dried.

If you plan on planting garlic again next season, save some of your largest, best-formed bulbs to plant again in the fall.

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