odd garlic growth weather related?

[davespitzer]

I have grown chesnock red garlic for several years successfully, and always before have seen spathes on most of the plants. This year I have seen zero flowers on a couple of hundred plants, and the few I have pulled have single, large bulbs (not the usual cluster of cloves.) I know garlic has several growth habits in wild plants, presumably to assure survival in harsh and unpredictable conditions, but I've never seen more than a few like this in any one year. Anybody know if this is usual in odd weather years like this one? Dave

[henry]

cold stratification of the garlic likly did not happen, did you have a warmer winter then normal?

henry

[davespitzer]

Actually it was colder, longer, and wetter than usual. I planted in mid-October and had excellent emergence, and the plants overwintered without incident. They just didn't mature as they normally do, although once I pulled them they were better than I thought they would be. They are still very moist, though, and I am trying to dry them ASAP.
I'm not familiar with the term 'cold stratification'. Could you explain that to me, please? Thanks, Dave

[davespitzer]

Found a wikipedia on cold stratification, interesting term. Where I live the summers get to over 100°F, and I have a hard time keeping things cool enough to survive the heat. Last summer a fair amount of my garlic went bad before I could use it, and that may have affected the bulbs I kept for seed, although they looked fine when I planted them. But as I said earlier, they emerged fine and survived the winter apparently in good shape.
This year I am building a straw bale 'root cellar' under an oak tree, hoping to beat the heat, and I am going to research the possibility of more heat-tolerant varieties. Dave