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Plant your garlic now! |
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| The fall is the
perfect time to plant garlic in your garden. Compared to
spring-planted garlic, fall garlic produces larger bulbs, matures
earlier, and often has fewer disease problems. Additionally, certain
types of garlic, mainly the hard-neck types like Rocambole, will not
mature in time from a spring planting.
Of the three types of garlic, soft-neck garlic is the type most often found in supermarkets. It stores for a number of months and can be braided into attractive hangings. Alternatively, hard-neck types store for a much shorter time but have a much more pungent flavour. Elephant garlic, a member of the leek family, is an extremely mild-flavoured garlic. The individual cloves can often be 2 inches wide and are great for roasting. In areas where summers are cool and damp, elephant garlic is an excellent choice.
The hard-neck types of garlic usually send up flowering heads. Although beautiful, these heads should be removed as they drain energy from the bulbs. The heads can be added to stir-fries for a mild garlic taste. For more information on recipes and using garlic, try the Garlic Page. When the tops turn yellow, stop watering and allow the bulbs to cure in the soil for 2 weeks. Harvest the garlic by pulling the whole plant out of the soil, tying the leaves together, and then place the bulbs on a rack in a warm, dry spot. Soft-neck garlic can be braided and hung for long-term storage. The hard-neck types must be used within 1 or 2 months. Make sure you keep some bulbs aside for replanting! Are you a garlic lover? See what Mostly Garlic Magazine has to offer.
Easy tricks to keep your garden producingGardens need not stop producing food once cold weather comes. Many vegetables are suited to growing in cooler temperatures and can withstand frosts. The key to a successful fall/winter garden lies in the planning.
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