Garlic Question?

[QueBota]

We inherited some heirloom garlic from my FIL after he passed last year.

I have never grown garlic before, we put the cloves in the ground last fall and they
came up very nicely before winter came and continue to grow well this spring and
early summer.

I remember him telling me that he used to break/bend over the flower stalks at
a certain point. Last week they had the flower heads covered in a thin skin, over
the weekend the skin dropped off to reveal some very pretty purple flowers.

He indicated you needed to remove the flowers as they would take food/size
away from the heads.

Need some help with this one.

Also, when do you remove the garlic from the ground?

Thanks,
Dave

 

[charlz]

The flower stalks (scapes) curl as they grow and then straighten. You should remove once they have made a full curl. If you remove before then they will just-regrow a new one. Since they are well past that point you can go ahead and remove them or you could let them go all the way until they produce bubils which can be planted for more garlic. Making the flower/bubils is supposed to reduce the size of the bulbs but I have not noticed a remarkable difference between those with the scapes cut off and those that go to full flowering although I normally cut the scapes off. (I do fertilize though) BTW the scapes are good eating if you get them right when they full curl and are still tender. Rub them around in olive oil with salt and pepper and throw on the BBQ for a few minutes. They are extremely strong when fresh but a little heat takes that right out of them.

When the lower 1/3 of the leaves have turned yellow is the time to harvest. If you wait too long the cloves may split the paper of bulbs etc. I like to wash them right when harvested and use a hose to wash all the dirt out of the roots. Let them hang/sit somewhere where the sun cannot touch them but has plenty of air movement for about 30 days. Then trim them up and enjoy

 

[bcjmmac]

I agree with Charlz

I have left the scapes on a few garlic plants & planted the bulbits around trees I wanted to protect from deer. They establish readily but take a few years to reach "harvestable" size if you wanted to use them for culinary purposes. In eastern Europe I have had pickled scapes - quite tasty & milder than when freshly picked. We tend to use the scapes in stir fries - we remove them from the dish before serving.

Harvesting - the trick is to wait long enough for the bulbs to reach maximum size, but to pick before the bulbs begin to split apart as that reduces shelf life. I'd suggest that when the stalks start getting brown you harvest a clove once a week until they start to show signs of getting ready to split &/or reach the size they were when you planted them. If any bulbs do split, use them first.

I don't bother with washing as they clean easily when dry. I dry them on a tarp in barn for a few weeks them brush off the dirt & store in mesh bags in the basement (cool & dry). If you want to braid them check the web for instructions - I find it is best to do the braiding before the stalks get too dry//a few days after they are out of the ground.

 

[jinman]

I admit that I'm the type of guy who just goes and does stuff first (maybe twice) without finding out if I'm doing right. So, after my wife planted garlic and it failed, I was sure it was something she did wrong and I planted. My garlic came up better, but failed too.

Being frustrated, I went down to the store and bought Chinese garlic, about 20 full bulbs in a bag. I brought it home and made up little 4" pots of potting soil, half full. Then, I took some old dry rooting compound and applied it to the garlic bulbs. I put the whole bulbs in the soil and covered and watered them. Only then did I finally go on the internet to see how to grow garlic. Oh boy! Here I am on May 1st with garlic that is supposed to be planted in the fall. To make matters worse, it is supposed to have several weeks of temperatures in the 40s to make it germinate. So I put it into a little refrigerator I had and left it for a month and then set it beside a sunny window, but inside out of the direct sunlight.

I now have 1' to 1-1/2' garlic stalks (6 or 8 per pot) growing like gangbusters at the end of June.:confused2: I don't know whether I should go ahead and plant it or just toss it and try again this fall when the timing is right. I guess I haven't lost anything by planting it now except my pride since I totally screwed up the planting schedule. I did learn that plain ol' garlic bulbs from the store are fine to plant, especially with the rooting compound added. One of these days I'll have a nice garlic bed, even if I do have to do it the hard-headed don't ask questions way of learning at the school of hard knocks.

 

[bcjmmac]

You might be OK planting them now. Chinese garlic is likely a softneck variety (lots of cloves with no or a small central stem). In colder climates, it is often recommended to plant softneck garlic in the early spring as the plants can't stand very cold winters. Hardneck garlic tends to have fewer cloves & a fairly large central stem - they are very cold tolerant.

If you can, find a local grower & buy some cloves to plant next fall.

good luck

 

[SandburRanch]

In zone 6/7 I harvest in early to mid June.

 

[jinman]

In zone 6/7 I harvest in early to mid June.

You're just posting that picture to taunt me aren't you. Wow! What a beeee-utiful big ol' bulb of garlic. There's an empty lot not far from me that has beautiful garlic and iris blooming every spring. I'm so tempted to go there some night and take a sample or two. However, I just won't trespass and do that. Now, if I discover that the property is really on the highway right-of-way, then that's a different story.

 

[GGB]

That is one big bulb of garlic! When they get to that size, are they more or less pungent? Garlic cloves that large should be great on the grill with a little coating of olive oil. Makes me hungry just thinking about it.

I accidentally killed my garlic plants when I was spraying weeds and got in a hurry. Time to plan for this fall's planting, if I can remember this year.

 

[SandburRanch]

When I was given this start of garlic several years ago I was told it was Elephant Garlic and more closely related to the Leek. I've never modified the plant at any stage and really never knew it was recommended. When the leaves turn brown I harvest it.

That to be saved for consumption I clean immediately followed by the wife finely mincing in a small food processor and placing in Qt. freezer bags flattened as in pancake flat. To use she just pinches off the amount desired and returns the bag to the freezer.

We usually save 20-25 cloves to plant in the fall but the onion skin like layers remain in tact unlike those processed for use. Due to 2 years of severe drought and grasshoppers I don't have enough to process for consumption this year and only a dozen cloves for fall planting.

The OP mentioned a pretty bloom and it made me think they may have the Elephant Garlic variety that has a bloom of about 3 inch diameter.

jinman- I'll keep you in mind if my supply comes back better next year.:thumbsup:

 

[Mousefield]

The flower stalks (scapes) curl as they grow and then straighten. You should remove once they have made a full curl. If you remove before then they will just-regrow a new one. Since they are well past that point you can go ahead and remove them or you could let them go all the way until they produce bubils which can be planted for more garlic. Making the flower/bubils is supposed to reduce the size of the bulbs but I have not noticed a remarkable difference between those with the scapes cut off and those that go to full flowering although I normally cut the scapes off. (I do fertilize though) BTW the scapes are good eating if you get them right when they full curl and are still tender. Rub them around in olive oil with salt and pepper and throw on the BBQ for a few minutes. They are extremely strong when fresh but a little heat takes that right out of them.

When the lower 1/3 of the leaves have turned yellow is the time to harvest. If you wait too long the cloves may split the paper of bulbs etc. I like to wash them right when harvested and use a hose to wash all the dirt out of the roots. Let them hang/sit somewhere where the sun cannot touch them but has plenty of air movement for about 30 days. Then trim them up and enjoy

We plant about 1,000 bulbs a year. We do notice is we miss taking off a scapes then we do get a much smaller bulb. So we try really hard not to miss taking any off.