Garlic problems
 

All was well for well over 6 months but today I noticed 2 changes I had somehow missed.

1) It is a softneck variety I believe ( thermidrome ) but it looks like it is making scapes. What does this mean for softneck garlic and will it affect anything ?

2) Seems to be little rust spots here and there, is it too late to spray with dithane ? Or should I just do nothing.

Ignore the tomato picture, I tried to edit it out to no avail

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Softnecks do occasionally produce scapes, when they are stressed. Sometimes they produce bulbils in the stem, instead of a "normal" scape. I've seen a few of these at the farm, but I don't know if the bulb size was affected. With hardnecks, if you don't remove the scape, you need to leave them longer to get to the usual size. So unless you want the bulbils, you may want to snap off the scapes.


I've never seen garlic rust before. :no: Apparently you should remove the affected leaves because otherwise it will spread. Also if you have some clean straw to put around the plants, that would stop water splashing up from the soil - which is where the rust fungus lives.
according to:
[url]http://www.digthis.com/garlic-rust/[/url]

Two years ago I had quite many softnecks producing real scapes. Usually there has been bulbils growing inside the stem, but that time the scapes were like with hardnecks. The ones with scapes had smaller bulbs than the ones without. I planted cloves from the bulbs with the real scape, but they did not grow scape like that the next year.
Here is the thread about the thing: [url]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=45673[/url]

Sari

[QUOTE=svalli;736109]Two years ago I had quite many softnecks producing real scapes. Usually there has been bulbils growing inside the stem, but that time the scapes were like with hardnecks. The ones with scapes had smaller bulbs than the ones without. I planted cloves from the bulbs with the real scape, but they did not grow scape like that the next year.
Here is the thread about the thing: [URL]http://tomatoville.com/showthread.php?t=45673[/URL]

Sari[/QUOTE]

I am cutting them all off now, I don't want smaller bulbs.

And the rust has spread literally overnight so im spraying with fungicide to try and retard its spread.

I knew rust was a serious problem in the UK but thought I might have missed it but I am not so lucky.

Only the last photo shows evidence of rust. Not saying you arent seeing it spreading, but a lot of your yellow streaking could just be normal drying down during bulb formation.
Mine are really starting to show yellow and I just removed scapes.
Every year this stage is a mental hurdle because my eyes and brain sub-consciously tell me something is wrong with my crop because is starts to look so "bad".
Really, top growth is just ending and sending product to the bulb.
As far as you saying its spreading, are you seeing the dark, raised pustules like on your last photo? Or is it just paling, yellowing leaves?

[QUOTE=PureHarvest;736144]Only the last photo shows evidence of rust. Not saying you arent seeing it spreading, but a lot of your yellow streaking could just be normal drying down during bulb formation.
Mine are really starting to show yellow and I just removed scapes.
Every year this stage is a mental hurdle because my eyes and brain sub-consciously tell me something is wrong with my crop because is starts to look so "bad".
Really, top growth is just ending and sending product to the bulb.
As far as you saying its spreading, are you seeing the dark, raised pustules like on your last photo? Or is it just paling, yellowing leaves?[/QUOTE]

Some leaves have been yellow like that for a while, especially after gale force winds battered them.

The dark orange rust looking stuff I started to notice a little cluster here and there yesterday but today when I checked I noticed it much more with one of them fairly covered it in. I pulled it up and used the bulb with some tomato sauce.

I think it is our weather, the grass and plants are completely wet every morning and it has not rained in the night. Its just heavy dew all the time.
My glasshouse is the same, lots of mold and blight like problems every year and the plants are wet from late evening to early morning because of dew.

[QUOTE]Mine are really starting to show yellow and I just removed scapes.
Every year this stage is a mental hurdle because my eyes and brain sub-consciously tell me something is wrong with my crop because is starts to look so "bad".[/QUOTE]

So glad you said that PH. Mine are there now though just scaping, having me wonder if I have watered too much or not enough. Won't be too much longer now.

[QUOTE=GrowingCoastal;736162]So glad you said that PH. Mine are there now though just scaping, having me wonder if I have watered too much or not enough. Won't be too much longer now.[/QUOTE]


I guess we all get it! I don't water the garlic as a rule - so I worry about maybe I should have? Or if not, did they get too much rain? Is that a normal yellowing or is it bad? :dizzy: :roll: Just aside from I think I like to fuss and worry, but with garlic harvest time I can get really anxious about whether they're ready or not! :o

Amen to all. Lol, I agree bower.
Seems like no matter the season or year to year or stage, or fertilizer regimen, I get yellow tips after March. Then we get to now and I think things like, I should’ve fertigated much earlier. The potassium I put down in the fall was gone by spring from rain etc, because my sandy soil doesn’t hold onto it.
All kidding aside, I may cut my total fertilizer in half this fall and apply the rest in March.
Then there were the thrips I found about a week before harvest last year. Had they been there much longer than I noticed, and that caused early yellowing?
All good stuff for the next time though. Try to improve every year.
I’m scouting diligently for thrips, checking soil moisture levels (it’s been dry here for two weeks), and pulling a bulb every few days to see what’s doing.
I think this years harvest might be two weeks ahead of the last two.
There is a grower/writer from Virginia that grows garlic and has phenology info on her site. She shows harvest dates going back a number of years. Basically you could average it out, but there are some years that show a 2-3 week swing from her “normal” harvest date.
I’ll try to find and post the link.
Edit: here it is. Pam Dawling, her blog is the most informative I’ve ever read. Lots of detail, no fluff.
[url]https://www.sustainablemarketfarming.com/2013/03/28/phenology-what-happens-when/[/url]