Growing garlic

BWZN93

I did - I just did a clove, not a whole bulb thingy!! (although it did originally cross my mind, but then I figured out to treat them as individual seeds!)

Jo xx

GreenFingers_2

For those who want to grow garlic in flowerpots then now is a good time to plant your garlic cloves. Planting at this time of the year will provide you with some really plump, juicy, garlic bulbs for harvesting next July or August. We’ll talk about harvesting, drying and storing next year….

There are many named varieties of garlic cloves and seeds available from garden centres but I use a few cloves from the bulbs I buy from the supermarket. Break the bulb down into its individual cloves and select the largest and firmest cloves. Large cloves really do grow into large bulbs and a bumper crop. Don’t use cloves that are dry and shrivelled, as they will not grow.

I planted my cloves this morning… this is what I did…. I filled an 8” flowerpot with a good general purpose potting mix and planted three cloves in it, about 1” to 2” deep and a couple of inches or so apart. The cloves are planted with the ‘pointy’ end up, watered well and labelled. If your using a 6” pot then just plant one clove in it.

My pot is now in the greenhouse but the good thing about garlic plants is that they’re as tough as old boots, a bit like daffodil and tulip bulbs – nothing will show over the winter as the plants will be growing their roots but early next year green sprouts will show through. If you have no greenhouse, no problem, just pop the pot out near the back door or somewhere sheltered from the most severe of frosts. Easy peasy…..

The site below provides some interesting details, it also has some good garlic recipes and lots and lots of other useful information.

http://www.garlic-central.com/garlic-growing.html

Hope this is of use....

squeaky

Being in the South of england I've actually only recently planted mine out. I'm expecting great things of them next year

Gingham_Ribbon

I'm stuck about the ones I planted last summer. They look a bit like leeks but there's no flower. Is it okay to pull them up? It's been raining so heavily I'm worried they'll be rotting in there...

Magentasue

Garlic should be planted now - some books say Feb but it's best to let it get a head start. I'm wondering why you planted in the summer or do you mean spring? You normally pull it up late summer when the leaves have gone yellow and died back. Don't think you'll get enough sun for that now! Pull up one and have a look!

Gingham_Ribbon

I did it on advice in another thread. No great loss if it doesn't work out. But they just look so promising!

xueta

GreenFingers wrote:

My pot is now in the greenhouse ...

That's interesting ... I've planted mine directly into the ground outside, as I've always thought that garlic needed a cold spell of a couple of weeks to develop properly into separate cloves. (Some people recommend a period in the fridge). Otherwise it simply grows so that it resembles a small onion - this is one of the problems of planting in the late spring, the garlic just doesn't get exposed to a cold snap. Anyway, it's worked well for me this year - I've still got a few plaits of fat garlic bulbs left now!

It'll be interesting to see how greenhouse garlic fares and to find out if it is really necessary to expose garlic to the cold!

GreenFingers_2

Gingham_Ribbon wrote:

I'm stuck about the ones I planted last summer. They look a bit like leeks but there's no flower. Is it okay to pull them up? It's been raining so heavily I'm worried they'll be rotting in there...

Hello Gingham Ribbon,

It sounds as if you started your garlic off a little late in the year, leaving it not enough time to fully develop. Garlic plants are ripe when the leaves turn yellow. I would turn it out now and see what you have – you never know you may have some nice bulbs and cloves. You can always plant one or two new cloves now in the pot and leave it outside knowing that it will be fully matured by next July....

Hope this helps..

GreenFingers_2

xueta wrote:

That's interesting ... I've planted mine directly into the ground outside, as I've always thought that garlic needed a cold spell of a couple of weeks to develop properly into separate cloves.....

Hello Xueta,

Over the winter period I tend to put all the plants which are growing in pots into the Greenhouse mainly for protection. These are mostly ornamental such as geraniums, hostas, the miniature roses and so on. The greenhouse is not heated at all and the more tender plants are stood on a bench or on the ground on a piece of cardboard or a layer of newspaper for a bit of insulation. This keeps them ticking over very well.....

With regards to the garlic plants, planting now either in pots or directly in the veggie patch provides for an early start and hopefully bigger bulbs. The next planting time is February/March for ripening in July/August. I can’t say I’ve ever heard that garlic bulbs must be chilled before planting but I guess they would get this by default in the UK anyway whether in an un-heated greenhouse or directly in the ground due to the coldness of December and January.

My own pot of garlic plants will be moved out of the greenhouse during March and put near the border where the rest of the vegetables will grow. The only plants that stays in the greenhouse for the summer, is one of the tomatoes plants, the peppers and perhaps a chilli plant or two.

Hope this is ok...

Gingham_Ribbon

Thanks. Pulled a couple out and it looks like a big clump of very strong roots but not much else. Bit disappointing but at least I know now. I can use the pots to start the next batch and I have some organic garlic sitting in the fridge begging to be planted!

Thanks again.