Learn How to Plant Organic, Fresh Garlic All Year Round

Welcome Tips Learn How to Plant Organic, Fresh Garlic All Year RoundCredit: mojerecepty

Present in stews, pesto or Sarladaise potatoes or mixed with the vegetables on your plancha, garlic (Allium sativum) is an essential ingredient in our kitchens. Growing garlic is easy, so get started on its cultivation and have fun testing all the types of garlic and flavors available!

1 – WHEN TO PLANT GARLIC: WHICH MONTH TO CHOOSE?

Planting garlic on the balcony is an economical idea. In autumn, purple garlic and white garlic are preferred, as they thrive in the ground during this time of year. As for red garlic and pink garlic, they grow better in spring. Depending on the region, this root vegetable is planted in November, one month before the first frosts. This way, it can get a head start and have beautiful green stems. The cloves will resume their growth in spring and will be more developed than those that were planted at this time.

• White garlic is planted in autumn from October to December. It is planted as long as it does not freeze and as early as possible, because it takes a long time to grow. It reaches maturity after 6 to 8 months. White garlic likes the cold. If it is planted in hot weather, it will have difficulty having beautiful heads.
• Purple garlic and red garlic are planted in autumn. They are sensitive to cold and require a mild climate.
• Pink garlic is grown in spring, in January, February and March.

2 – HOW TO PLANT GARLIC?

Planting cloves (or pods):

To obtain heads full of cloves, it is recommended to plant garlic in a period extending from 5 days before the full moon until the day after it.

On the other hand, if your goal is to have large pods (but necessarily fewer on a head), favor root days, in a waning or waxing moon (biodynamicists are divided on this subject… both are therefore possible).

Choose the outer cloves of the heads for planting to obtain large heads. The inner cloves can be used as seeds for the production of garlic (fresh garlic stems harvested from April).

Plant the pods head up, 2 to 3 cm deep in rows 20 to 25 cm apart and 10 to 12 cm apart in the row.

3 – PARASITES AND DISEASES TO WATCH OUT FOR

This bulb is quite resistant and is rarely affected by external agents. However, it is necessary to watch out for mildew, garlic rust and onion fly.

Its biggest enemy is water. In fact, most crop problems arise from too much humidity and stagnant water.

4 – HARVESTING GARLIC

Germination occurs approximately 1 month after planting.

Before harvesting the garlic, remember to tie up the stems that are starting to turn yellow in order to stop their development and promote the concentration of sap in the head of garlic.

When the bulbs reach a respectable size and seem well formed (in June/July depending on the variety grown), it’s time to harvest your garlic!

• The harvest takes place in summer, generally in June-July.
• Before storing garlic, dry it in the sun for a few days.
• Then clean it and store it in a dry, ventilated and rather cool place.

It should also be noted that it is possible to harvest green garlic in the spring (generally around May) and thus consume both the bulbs and the leaves.