Another garlic question....

[vfem]

I know, I know... another question... I'm such a dork....

I found these bulblets that fell off my garlic, probably about 4-5 off of each garlic bulb (yellow and they look like extra tiny cloves)... some less, some more... and some I dropped back down into the dirt by accident.

Anyone know if I can replant these to grow more garlic?! Oh, I so hope so. And if I do... should I keep them out and dry them like my garlic and then plant again in the fall, or should I plant these now and just let nature decide?

 

[Greenthumb18]

I wouldn't see why you couldn't replant those bulblets, i know i would. Yep i would replant them now, depending how small they are maybe they should be ready to harvest by next season.

 

[vfem]

Then unless anyone can tell me why not, I definitely will replant them soon. I don't mind waiting until fall if I could. I have 28 of these bulblets and that's not bad off of 8 elephant garlic plants harvested.

 

[jojo54]

Would you have to plant the bulblets earlier than the regular garlic cloves since they are smaller?

 

[Ridgerunner]

I tried planting those hard small bublets last fall. I think that is what you are talking about. They were pretty much on the outside of the clove? None sprouted. I think they are immatures that did not develop enough to be viable. If you have room, you can certainly try. Maybe you will have better luck that I did, but don't count on them for your main crop.

I did not think to try to eat one. Have you tried them?

 

[vfem]

I tried planting those hard small bublets last fall. I think that is what you are talking about. They were pretty much on the outside of the clove? None sprouted. I think they are immatures that did not develop enough to be viable. If you have room, you can certainly try. Maybe you will have better luck that I did, but don't count on them for your main crop.

I did not think to try to eat one. Have you tried them?

Those are exactly what I am talking about! I have not tried to eat one, they seem too hard? Remind me of snail shells to the touch, and weight!?

I saw something about them in an article I read about how to turn your garlic bed into a 'perennial' garlic bed. The suggestion was to leave these bulblets in the ground and they would grow a second crop the following year. However, it was not elephant garlic they talked about and I saw no photo of this 'bulblet' and I just guessed this is what they are talking about.

So more research is needed!!!

I suppose it I plant now, and I have no sprout by say.... October when I would normally plant, I should just replant?!

I'll look into it further.

 

[vfem]

I found a couple comments about the bulblets and they say they take up to 18 months to grow a new bulb. So I'm going to throw them back in and plant them now. In the fall I will cover with leaves and grass clippings I do believe.

Whatever, if it doesn't work, it doesn't work! :/

 

[jojo54]

I was talking to a guy that grows alot of garlic and asked him about the scapes. he said you need patience because they take three years to mature. So if you have the room and the time give it a try. He said you treat them like regular garlic and dig out and dry each year and then replant.

 

[HunkieDorie23]

OK, a garlic question I can answer. The bulbils are fine to plant, some companies sell them in the spring. I had looked into it which is why I can actually answer this question. Next year it will have formed a bulb, you can leave it or dig it up and plant it where you want or even eat it. If left or transplanted then the next year it will form a garlic head. Everything I have read states that it takes 2-3 years for the bulbils to reach maturity.

In my organic gardening book it does talk about a perennial garlic bed in Washington that hasn't be tilled or replanted for over 20 years. It is worked and tended to but never completely harvested, the guy pulls up what he needs, leaves the smaller heads and allows the bulbils to grow and hasn't added to it with new garlic since he planted it. Pretty awesome. This is my goal for my bed this fall. The thing that I am not sure about is if the bulbils will cross with the other garlic in my bed. But as long as I am also add some of the bulbs back into the bed in the fall I should keep some of the garlic pure and I will get to name my hibrids which is going to be cool too.

Anyway is the site that sells the bulbils. http://www.tomatobob.com/Garlic.htm