How To Grow Garlic

Storage Before Planting

Ideal storage conditions for seed garlic are temperatures between 56–58°F and 50% humidity. Since most homes don't have a place that perfectly matches these conditions, simply do your best to store your seed garlic in a cool, dark place with moderate humidity.

 

Planting Your Garlic

Prepare your soil - We recommend incorporating compost and a balanced organic fertilizer into your soil. Additionally you can amend your soil with cover crops, aged manure and gypsum, like we do on the farm. A soil pH of 6.0-7.0 is important to ensure that your garlic plants can uptake nutrients from the soil. With a pH of 6.5 being ideal. If you are planting garlic in an established vegetable garden, where other veggies have grown well, your soil pH is probably within range. If you are establishing a new garden, or have had limited success in an existing garden, it is a good idea to do a soil test to find out if your pH needs adjusting.  

Planting dates vary based on the climate you are growing in. In northern climates most growers plant throughout the month of October. In southern climates garlic is planted in November and into December. When planting your garlic, separate cloves from the bulb and plant within a few days of this process. 

Plant the cloves outside in a location with full sun, pointy side up, with 2-3 inches of soil above the clove. The spacing of your garlic plants can range from 4-8 inches depending on how much garden space you have and how big of bulbs you would like to grow. Tighter spacing will yield smaller bulbs and wider spacing will yield larger bulbs.  

Mulching your garlic can provide many benefits, but there are some important considerations to be successful mulching. In late winter, pull the mulch back slightly from the plants to give the young shoots a clear, unobstructed path to the sunlight. Avoid mulches with allelopathic properties. Look for mulches with limited seed heads, weeds or pesticides (organic weed free straw, second cutting alfalfa, or leaves are best).

 

Spring and Summer Care

Feed, weed and water your garlic through the spring and early summer! Fertilizer applications should take place between March and the beginning of May. There are many ways to apply fertility– top dress with compost and granular fertilizers, liquid fertilizers like fish emulsion and compost teas, etc. 

Water consistently throughout the spring and summer. Garlic grows best when provided 0.5 to 1" of water per week depending on the growth stage. When plants are small and you have cool early spring temperatures you can water around 0.5" per week. As temperatures rise and your garlic plants size up, you should increase irrigation up to 1" per week. Your specific watering schedule will depend on your soil drainage and water holding capacity.

Weeding is important for a healthy garlic crop because their roots do not easily compete for water and nutrients. Make sure to control weeds by hoeing, hand weeding or with heavy mulch. 

Harvesting

The timing of when garlic is ready to harvest depends on your climate. In southern climates garlic can be ready for harvest as early as May. In northern climates garlic is generally ready for harvest between the late June and the middle of July. The exact timing of when to harvest varies depending on the variety of garlic and growing conditions. 

When you are approaching time to harvest, stop irrigating 7-14 days before you plan on harvesting. This encourages the plants to die back, bulbs to increase in size, and reduces the amount of moisture in the plants as you begin the curing process.  

As garlic begins to die back, the leaves will turn yellow starting at the bottom of the plant. Harvest your garlic when there are approximately 5 green leaves left on the plants and cloves have become defined on the bulbs. 

Curing Your Garlic

Hang garlic or lay out on screens in a well-ventilated space out of direct sunlight. Garlic is generally done curing in 3-6 weeks. To check if your garlic is done curing, break open a bulb and check the clove wrappers for moisture. If the clove wrappers feel papery and dry to the touch, your garlic is cured and ready for storage. Curing can take longer in humid conditions. 

Once your garlic is cured, clip roots and stems, and clean by removing the outermost bulb wrapper.

Now your garlic is ready for storage! Back to that cool, dark place with moderate humidity. 

 

Wishing you an abundant garlic crop!

Jon & Gia