Garlic is kind of odd. It’s really pretty easy to grow, but some varieties require long, warm growing seasons. Others do well planted before the freeze. Here in Connecticut, the best way to grow it is to plant it in October and to use a variety that can make it happen in the spring from a winter of happy beginnings. This hits people funny, but damnit.. it’s true. October. Spring plantings can work, but they just won’t be all that bulby or bulbous or bulbened or whatever. Magical things happen to the planted clove when it sits in temperatures 40 F or so for a couple of months. In fact, spring plantings can benefit from some freezer or fridge exposure prior to planting.
Now, every climate is different, but seriously.. here in Connecticut, October. When I planted it last fall, I opted to mulch it with some straw. I removed the straw a few weeks ago because I don’t want the soil to get constantly soggy; it needs to dry a bit.
The variety that I’m using is a hardnecked type called red russian. I get it from Maine and it’s suited to my climate. I’ve got about 65 or so coming up and can’t wait for June! Prior to that I will get the good ol’ scape – the false flower that shoots up. I’ll need to remove it to allow the bulbs to bet bulbier. Scape is delicious and can be cut into pieces for eating. Most recipes use it for pesto, but there’s plenty of other stuff you can do with it.
Here we go! Some pictures. Including my dog and cat who always want to know what’s going on in the garden.
Filed under: Uncategorized , fall garlic, garlic, scape
Lookin’ good, SJ! And while it seems weird to plant a vegetable in fall, that’s when we have to plant our spring bulbs, right? That always struck me as weird, too. I confess that I love garlic scapes more than the cloves! I just mince them and use them in sautes and stir-fries. Yum!!!!
Now see Ben! You are right. I should make that point more often. We do plant our flower bulbs in the fall.
Don’t you just love how garlic looks when it comes up in the spring. I have some garlic that a friend gave me from their 200 year old house. It is a very old variety, and I just love it. If you want I wrote an article on garlic, after I did a lot of research on it. Just go here
http://docs.google.com/Doc?id=dhxcvps_47crsscmgj&hl=en
A very good article Zach. A keeper.. hope everybody (all 3) who is reading this checks it out…
I guess I’ve just never thought that planting garlic in the fall was weird. I’ve always seen it done that way. I find it weird when the southerners plant in the spring as they sometimes do.
Truth is Daphne that I’d take the southerners growing season! But I’d probably still want to plant garlic in the fall. Force of habit.
Garlic scapes are so good! I actually have to purchase them at the farmer’s market. Poor me. But this fall, we shall plant and have all we want next spring. Sweet!
I’ve got a friend who does all the cooking… get your hands on that gardeningvirgins! Highly recommended. Because then you get to eat the scapes without doing much other than getting them out of the dirt.
That first pic looks like it’s right out of a magazine! Beautiful!
Your garlic looks great! When do you harvest it?
Thanks Stephanie. I’ll harvest it in June, probably mid june. We’ll see how the bulbs are doing by then.
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