How To Tell When Garlic is Ready

[Backyard Buddies]

First off, I know that I did it incorrectly. I was given some homegrown garlic from some family members, but I didn't get it into the ground until February (should have been planted btw. late Oct. and early Dec.). However, knowing that it was a use it or lose it situation, I planted it anyway in Feb.

From my reading, it would seem that it should be ready toward August or September, right? However, I've been losing a few of them here and there, usually the ones that have the thinnest stalks. The foliage begins to die back and when I eventually dig them up, there is either no progress or halfway developed heads that are quite loose and not yet packed into a head.

I've never grown garlic before so I only know what I've read and nada from experience. How will I know that it is ready, especially since I've been getting plants with foliage that has died back and there was nothing underneath? There are only 6 little guys left (I started with 9), and it's likely one of those will fail (also thin stalk). I'm not sure if I'm overwatering/underwatering or what. In other words, I'm clueless!

 

[OaklandCityFarmer]

Normally garlic takes about 8-9 months to fully form. They prefer very moist (on the verge of soggy) soils during the growing season. Usually it's recommended to dig them up when the lower third is starting to brown but the tops are still green. Leaving them in the ground too long can cause the heads to split.

Let me ask you a question, were the bulbs that you planted small? Usually the problem with smaller harvest heads is that small bulbs were planted and since you planted them a little late this might have a bigger affect on the result.

When you do pull them, hang them in a warm, dry place for about 2 weeks to let them cure before using them. They can then keep for up to 6 months.

So you learn for next time. Big deal. October is coming.

 

[Backyard Buddies]

Yet again, Oakie comes to the rescue!

I have no idea what kind of garlic these are. They've been grown by a cousin for decades. He just keeps replanting them year after year.

I brought 4 heads home with me. We ate one, and gave one to the neighbor to plant, leaving two for us to plant. By the time we got to planting them, some of them were starting to lose moisture, which is why we ended up with so few to put into the ground. Some of the cloves were smaller than the others, some fairly large, which is certainly the reason that some of the plants have had more energy to grow bigger than some of the others.

I'm probably underwatering them as they do dry out between waterings. I'm sticking my finger in the ground and feeling dry before I water again.

I'm not even hoping to eat any this year, other than the ones too small to plant. With so few growing, I'd like to dry them and replant the rest of them to create a good harvest for next year.

Thanks!

 

[Tutter]

What do they look like....I mean the heads/cloves? White, red striped etc.?

Were they easy to peel when you used them in food?

Rather than worrying about it overmuch, maybe you could just beg a lot, and your cousin will share some more?

When we plant garlic, and we grow a lot, we sit and divide heads into cloves, plant the big ones, and keep the little ones for cooking. Dh hates garlic planting time in the kitchen, because it's such a pain to skin and ready those little ones for use in food! lol!

Too, you can have fun and grow more than the one type. Will the church garden be growing some?

Good luck!

 

[Backyard Buddies]

What do they look like....I mean the heads/cloves? White, red striped etc.?
They were large cloves, purple striped, few cloves per plant. Their growth habit is fan like. They don't grow up tall looking like some garlic I've seen.

Were they easy to peel when you used them in food?
I don't remember, really. I don't recall them being particularly difficult to peel, but then I use one of those flexible rolling tube things to peel my garlic.

Rather than worrying about it overmuch, maybe you could just beg a lot, and your cousin will share some more?
My cousins live in Illinois. I'm sure they'd mail me some, but I'm not sure if they can do that or not. Do you know? No one asked me at the airport if I was carrying concealed garlic.

When we plant garlic, and we grow a lot, we sit and divide heads into cloves, plant the big ones, and keep the little ones for cooking. Dh hates garlic planting time in the kitchen, because it's such a pain to skin and ready those little ones for use in food! lol!
Ah, if you don't have one, you need to get yourself a couple of these:
http://www.nextag.com/garlic-peeler/search-html

Too, you can have fun and grow more than the one type. Will the church garden be growing some?
Yes, definitely. I'm really looking forward to the winter garden there. Do you have any types of garlic that you really like and would recommend for the church garden?

Thanks Tutter!

 

[Tutter]

It's sounds pretty! I'm not sure on the law for that, though garlic braids are mailed from catalogs all over. Now you've got me wondering if they must spray them. Hmmmm. :/

Thanks for the link; that's a lot of choices! We used to have a rubber dealy, but I'd forgotten about them!

In the past, we mostly grew California garlic for market, as that's what the buyer wanted. The same type from Gilroy.

And we used that, plus grew a variety from a neighbor that no one knows the name of. His family brought it here.

This year, I'm still growing white California type for the person who wants it, but am also going to try:

Susanville;

Siberian;

An easy to peel, Italian, purple variety;

Purple Glazer;

and:

Music

I had about 10 others I wanted to try, but common sense for my pocketbook prevailed. Of course, whatever I like never needs buying again, which makes me feel better!

 

[Backyard Buddies]

Thanks for your list, Tutter! Yes, seed garlic can be expensive, but like you, I love the fact that you buy it once and plant it year after year. I'm one of those folks who hates to waste anything, recycles, etc. so garlic is right up my alley. Plus, we eat a lot of it here.

This variety is a similar situation to your neighbor's garlic - Someone long ago brought it to this country and my family has been growing it ever since. Thus, my hope is for it to survive and grow (if it's able to do so in my different climate) partly because of it's connection to my own heritage. I have so little space here that if I can get enough from these heads, I'm going to plant part of it here and part of it at the church. Other than the too-small-to-plant cloves, none will be eaten.

But, failing that, I'm sure Uncle George would send me a few more cloves. I know he would. And, come to think of it, you're right. My SIL once sent us a braid of garlic from a farm near her house in Eastern Washington.

I love garlic, so the prospect of growing more is really exciting to me! In your experience, when do orders need to be placed to assure the varieties you've chosen?

 

[Tutter]

Once it's summer, anytime. This wouldn't be too soon, being that it's just about July.

If you know a grower personally, it's a little better, but with a national seed company you never know just how limited, 'limited' really is, nor what's going to appeal to people in a given year. So you would be taking a chance of not getting the variety you would like, if you wait too long.

Most places don't send it to you until late summer/fall, so you won't have to worry about storing it until planting.

We eat a lot of it, too.

Yes, that's a good reason to try to keep it going. And making sure that it's planted in more than one place is a good hedge. :happy_flower

 

[Backyard Buddies]

Maybe there is hope after all!!!

When I planted the garlic from my cousin, I stuck in a few bigger cloves from the grocery store, just to see what would happen. Most of those died, but there was one that I thought that was still going. It was a puny, shrimpy thing with a very thin stalk. For the past few weeks, its foliage has been dying back and I thought it was simply rotting out like the other ones.

So, today while weeding, I decided to pull it out and found this!

It's not bumpy like I'd expect to see in a garlic (it looks more like an onion) but it was clearly doing something there under the soil. The remaining garlic (I believe all from my cousin) have stalks that are closer to 1 1/2 - 2" at the base of the soil so perhaps even if I can't see anything, there's more happening under the soil than I thought.

:rose

 

[Reinbeau]

Now, if you were to let that ripen completely (dried up roots and top growth) and replant it this fall, in the spring you'd have one gorgeous head of garlic growing for harvest next July.