General information and discussion about cultivating onions, garlic, shallots and leeks.
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October 10, 2015 | #46 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Vaasa, Finland, latitude N 63°
Posts: 838
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My favorite is an unknown originally Russian variety, which I got from a colleague's father-in-law. It may be an porcelain hardneck, since it has usually only four large cloves. It is a good producer this far north and stores well. Taste is quite strong, but not too pungent for eating raw.
I got my garlic bed in our field ready today and planted 36 Elephant Garlic and 120 of the Russian garlic cloves. Then it got too dark to plant anything and we had to head back home. I'll go back next weekend to plant rest of the cloves. I have some tiny bulbs, which I grew from previous season's bulbils and some bigger bulbils which grew in the stems of the softnecks this summer. I will plant those tomorrow in a raised bed here in our city yard, because those are too small to plant to the field.
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"I only want to live in peace, plant potatoes and dream." - Moomin-troll by Tove Jansson |
October 10, 2015 | #47 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Zone 6a Denver North Metro
Posts: 1,910
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A terrific thread! You're a guru of garlic and the pictures are a festival for the eyes.
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October 11, 2015 | #48 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Vaasa, Finland, latitude N 63°
Posts: 838
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I am not a guru at all. I have only experience from two successful garlic growing seasons. I just have a habit of getting obsessed with some plant species and start reading everything I can find about the subject. I really recommend Ted Jordan Meredith's book The Complete Book of Garlic. I spent last winter reading the book and dreaming about the cloves buried in the snow covered field.
I wish I had learned years ago how easy it is to grow garlic. My earlier trials were totally wrong, since I tried planting store bought cloves spring time and without vernalization. Those produced just small rounds. Now I am trying to find the best garlic varieties for growing in our climate. I could just be happy growing one hardneck variety, but it would not satisfy my obsessive nature. Sari
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"I only want to live in peace, plant potatoes and dream." - Moomin-troll by Tove Jansson |
October 11, 2015 | #49 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Aug 2015
Location: Zone 6a Denver North Metro
Posts: 1,910
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Old sage or not, you made the subject interesting, I was encouraged to learn three times as much as I knew about garlic before this thread. I didn't know softneck and hardneck, from redneck. Now I do.
I'm thinking on my softneck I will bend them over when a quarter or a third of the leaves have browned, and not wait till half or more. The top wrappers get so dry in just a couple of months in this arid high plains climate. I've just been storing mine in the cool basement pantry. Do you put yours in the fridge after harvest and drying? Last edited by Ricky Shaw; October 11, 2015 at 06:01 PM. |
October 11, 2015 | #50 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Jan 2014
Location: Near Philadelphia, PA
Posts: 1,940
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I believe that if you store your garlic in the fridge, it will trigger sprouting.
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October 11, 2015 | #51 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Apr 2007
Location: Des Moines, WA.
Posts: 358
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I don't believe you want to bend the tops over like onions. Rather I believe you want to dig up the bulbs when there are around 5 dried leaves on the bottom of the plants with the upper leaves still green. YMMV
http://www.gourmetgarlicgardens.com/ Log in here then go to the "Garlic Information Center" tab You can also make arrangements for purchases here. I am not connected to this site in any way. But I have purchased "seed" cloves here and was very satisfied. Len
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There's a fine line between gardening and madness. Last edited by troad; October 11, 2015 at 09:29 PM. Reason: misspelling |
October 12, 2015 | #52 |
Tomatovillian™
Join Date: Feb 2006
Location: Vaasa, Finland, latitude N 63°
Posts: 838
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The garlic, which we consume, is kept in room temperature. Previous season's garlic was still edible, but not juicy anymore, when we harvested the new crop.
PhilaGardener is correct about the sprouting triggered by refrigeration. The spring planted garlic is usually vernalized in the refrigerator. Last year I got some cloves for planting from clearance at a garden center in end of November. It was too late for planting them, so I kept them in the refrigerator till March. Then I planted the cloves in pots and put in my unheated greenhouse and planted in ground in end of May, when the ground had thawed. Sari
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"I only want to live in peace, plant potatoes and dream." - Moomin-troll by Tove Jansson |
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