Durgan, My garlic is about 6-8 inches tall. We have had some cold storms coming through still, but the warmth is now growing with the days. I am wondering if I need to add a high nitrogen fertilizer for them right now, one time, so that they can feed heavily, now, and start bulb production quickly. I would like to pull them around end of June, beg. of July. I remember last year you saying that you wish you pulled yours in end of June, that you did so around the end of the first week of July? What is your thought? I planted the cloves last fall. I also planted onion bulbs last fall and they are starting to grow well. I would like to pull them at the same time. Idea? Acoma.
It is cold at night for me, and I never get concerned about the garlic. Sometimes I image it grows covered with snow. Garlic is one tough plant. Mine is about 6 inches now and appears in perfect condition; in spite, of being covered with snow on about the 6 of April 2009. I never fertilize mine. All the garden gets is the compost the city supplies in May. I really lay it on, and the height of the beds doesn't appear to rise much so it must be disappearing each year. Fall onions I have no experience. I always plant mine in the Spring. I think both onions and garlic make bulb production based on light or length of day or light received, but am no expert on their growth characteristics. All I know is my garlic is as good or better that the commercial stuff from our famous Holland Marsh outside of Toronto.
Durgan, thanks. I mixed up a rich pile of compost last fall with the garden. I figured they were going to be ok, but wanted to be sure. We have had occasional snow flurries too, but the garlic and onion are troopers.
I planted garlic last Fall also. It grew like crazy all winter and was covered in snow for a while. I'd like to harvest it as early as possible so I can get another crop of something in the same space. How to tell when garlic is ripe ? Is it like onions the stalks die down ?
Galiano, when all the leaves start to brown, you should be ready. Hard neck or soft neck? Durgan has a great detail for last years garlic success. I highly suggest looking over the whole thread. He did a great job, it was inspirational for me to attempt. Durgan, you do hard neck and those produce the spirals close to being ready. Where is that thread for last year? Also, if doing soft neck, do they produce them too? Thanks.
Thanks for the reply. I don't know if I planted hard or soft neck but I'll have a look at what Durgan did last year.
Great picture story Durgan, I grow 300 hard neck variety(chinese ) in zone 3a they are still asleep at the moment, but as soon as the ground thaws, I take off the mulch (about 6" of leaves) and they start to sprout and are ready to harvest early august. I was told to take the curly scapes off. My biggest problem is keeping them past now, as they are sprouting in storage. You are right, the supermarket variety are no comparison for taste.
