Anyone Plant Garlic

[hunterridgefarm]

I have planted a trial row of garlic for next year to see how it grows. I have read a lot about planting and harvesting garlic and talked to a couple of people that grow garlic.

I only ordered 4 bulbs which gave me about 30 cloves to plant. I fertilized, added lime to bring the PH up. I read garlic likes a high PH. Planted the first of October and already have shoots up about 6-8". I need to cover with straw so to not freeze this winter. Garlic needs the cold weather to form the blub...so I read

If this produces well next June/July I will plant around 20-40 pounds to start with in October next year.

I remember a few years back a thread on TBN that showed a member that grew a large quantity of garlic but cannot locate the thread.

So, does anyone here grow garlic...any pointers?

I found this thread http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/283881-garlic-question.html but the one I remember showed a large harvest ready to dry. Don't remember the members name.

 

[hunterridgefarm]

Ok...this may be the thread I was thinking about. http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/photos/179078-garlic-harvest.html

magicheater needs to chime in here and give some pointers on growing garlic

 

[oosik]

No tips here. I love garlic and eat it on just about everything except ice cream. Have a local farmer growing commercial quantities and exporting it world wide. He's so good at it - my time would be wasted in any attempt. Besides, I've got a world of pocket gophers that eat just about everything.

 

[hunterridgefarm]

oosik,

I don't have gophers but if squirrels eat garlic I'm a dead man!

 

[Baby Grand]

oosik,

I don't have gophers but if squirrels eat garlic I'm a dead man!

Oh, but you'd have such tasty squirrels!

Was this the thread you were thinking of:?

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/264776-garlic-growing-tips.html#post3086563

 

[randy41]

i grow elephant garlic. this is in zone 7a. i usually plant it this week. i till then stick the cloves in the ground and then mulch. i use pine straw for mulch since there's plenty around here. i haven't tested the soil. i sell some of it and then keep some for seed garlic. its a good crop to grow here since the deer don't touch it and therefore can be planted pretty much anywhere. at the market i sell at there's a high demand for elephant garlic but a high supply of regular garlic. this year i harvested from about 150' of it.

 

[2LaneCruzer]

My neighbor planted some Elephant Garlic about 30 years ago, and it still comes up volunteer every year at the edge of the yard. I usually have plenty and never have to plant any. I just go out and snip of the blooms when they start coming on and then just dig them when the stems turn yellow.

 

[hunterridgefarm]

Oh, but you'd have such tasty squirrels!

Was this the thread you were thinking of:?

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/rural-living/264776-garlic-growing-tips.html#post3086563

That is one of the threads I was looking for. Seems I sometimes have issues with the search function.

 

[hunterridgefarm]

So do you guys have a lot of organic matter in your soil?

One of the people I talked to said he mulches leaves and manure to get his to grow.

I plan to try the elephant garlic if this produces a good bulb. I had tons of request for garlic at the farmers market this year. But instead of spending a lot of money this year I thought it would be best to do a trial and see how it would grow in my soil.

If it does good I will buy $200-300 worth next year. Sale half the harvest and save the other half.

I know I read one thread where a TBN member planted the whole garlic head instead of the cloves...of course I want mention any names but there is a tractor with a very similar name...Jinma tractor:laughing:

 

[jinman]

I know I read one thread where a TBN member planted the whole garlic head instead of the cloves...of course I want mention any names but there is a tractor with a very similar name...Jinma tractor:laughing:

Now, who would that be? Yes, I planted whole bulbs, but that was an experiment. When planted in my garden, I broke apart the cloves. I went to Walmart one day and they had a webbed stocking full of garlic bulbs. I brought them home and there were 20 bulbs. I took each bulb and treated it with some 10 year old Greenlight Rotenone. They don't even make that product anymore. The current product is called Rooting Hormone and is IBA, an acid that promotes root growth. I knew it was the wrong time of year, but I planted a flat of whole bulbs in potting soil and then put them in a little refrigerator for two weeks. When I took them out, it was Katie-bar-the-door. I had a gazillion sprouts everywhere. I don't think any of the bulbs did not sprout. I had a garlic forest, but at the absolute wrong time of the year.:confused2:

So I proved two points: 1) Grocery store garlic will grow just fine, especially with rooting hormone. 2) My sense of timing is terrible.