Garlic

Garlic is perhaps the lowest maintenance crop we raise.  It is very resistant to most pests and it replants itself every year.  Like most bulbs, garlic should be planted in the fall.  So why are we posting about it now?  There are many different varieties of garlic, but for a standard, hardnecked garlic you will have the most success with locally adapted varieties.  Examples of locally adapted garlic should begin to become available at your local farmer's market anytime now.  So now's the time.  Go out and get some, then store it in a cool, dry place until early October.

Planting and Harvesting:

Prepare a sunny to partially shaded location with your loosest, richest soil.  Use plenty of rich, black compost if you have it.  In early October, plant one clove each about 6" deep and 6-12" apart.  Orient the cloves so that the pointed end is up and the blunt end is down.  They will sprout small shoots in the fall.  Some green leaves will remain throughout the winter.  DO NOT mow these down.  The plant will gather energy slowly throughout the winter with them, which will give it a great start in the spring.  After they have come up in the fall, mulch them with a 2" layer of well shredded leaves if you have them.  A bagging mower works well for making this mulch.  When spring comes around you will observe rapid growth.  In mid-May the plants will send up a central stalk about 3 feet tall with a bulbous end called a scape.  As soon as they emerge, cut the scape off of the very end of the stalk.  This will force the plant to put its energy into the bulb rather than sexual reproduction.  Save the scapes and stir fry them in olive oil.  They are really good with a mild garlic taste.  You can see plants with the scapes removed in the picture above.

When one third of the plant has turned brown (mid June), pull one and look at it.  To pull a garlic plant, grasp it firmly as close to the ground as possible and steadily pull up.  Do not jerk them or you risk breaking the neck off and leaving the bulb in the ground.  If it has a well developed head with a "paper" wrapper around it, then pull them all.  If not, then check again the next week.  It's not a sin to just wait until the whole plant has died back in late June before pulling your garlic (see photo above).

Tips and Tricks:

• Buy locally grown garlic for starter bulbs.  Your farmer's market is a good place to look.  You want to purchase the largest, healthiest heads of garlic available and buy 3 times as much as you think you need for planting.  Once you get home, plant only the large cloves from each head.  Store and eat the rest.
• The best time to pull bulbs is after a rain.  The damp soil allows the bulb to come right up; with dry soil you may snap the neck of the garlic off and leave the head in the ground.
• When you pull your garlic, you will likely see small (3/8") orange bulblets around the outside of your bulb (see photo at the beginning of this post).  Those are new plants.  While pulling them out you will likely leave several in the ground, which will give you a brand new crop next year.  We have never replanted our garlic and have had a good crop every year.

Putting Up the Harvest:

• Whole bulbs.  
• Leave plenty of neck on each bulb (5-6").  Cutting it too close will open the bulb up to rot.  Let the bulbs air dry for a week in a warm airy place.  A covered porch with a fan is ideal, but the fan is not wholly necessary.  Just make sure there is plenty of air flow.  Store cured whole bulbs in a cool, dry, dark place.  
• Garlic Powder
• You can make your own garlic powder by dehydrating thin slices and then pulverizing them with a food processor.