Garlic is a food ingredient that is widely used to taste a variety of foods. Garlic is also beneficial for health, and can be dried for storage and consumption for a very long time. Planting and growing garlic is easy and inexpensive. In harvest season, you will get a lot of garlic and so many, you can share the harvest with friends. Read this article for information on how to choose the type of garlic to plant, grow it, harvest it at the end of the growing season, and store it properly.
Step
Part 1 of 5: Preparing to Plant Garlic
Step 1. Find out when is the right season to plant garlic in the area you live
In general, the best time to plant garlic is in mid-fall or early spring.
Garlic can grow well in almost any climate. However, it will not grow well if planted in areas where the climate is too hot or humid, or in areas with high rainfall
Step 2. Choose a good land to plant garlic and prepare the soil as well
To grow well, garlic needs a lot of sunlight. Garlic can still survive if partially covered, as long as it's not too long during the day or during the growing season. The soil in which garlic is planted should also be loose and well tilled. Sandy soil is the best type.
- Make sure the soil is well irrigated; because the type of soil whose basic material is clay is not good for planting garlic.
- Use compost and manure to enrich the soil nutrients, before planting with garlic.
Step 3. Choose fresh garlic
Garlic is usually grown from the clove – we can also call it a seed. To get started, all you need to do is buy garlic fresh at the store, or better yet, at a specialty stand selling produce or your local farm market. It is very important that you choose fresh, high-quality garlic. Choose organic types of garlic if you can, and avoid non-organic garlic that has been sprayed with chemicals.
- Buy fresh garlic cloves that are large. Do not buy garlic that has been softened.
- Each clove of garlic grows a shoot that will later become the onion plant itself. Keep this in mind when you're weighing how many onions you want to buy.
- If you have some garlic at home that have sprouted cloves, you can grow them too.
- Plantations or farms that usually breed young plant shoots also provide cloves of garlic for cultivation purposes. Visit places like these if you want to find specific varieties of onion plants, or want advice on things to watch out for when growing garlic plants. Apart from places like these, you can also look for unusual varieties of onions, which may be for sale on the internet.
Part 2 of 5: Growing Garlic
Step 1. Remove the cloves from the fresh head of garlic
Be careful doing this so you don't damage the base of the clove, which is where the clove attaches to the garlic disc. Garlic will not grow into shoots if the base of the clove is damaged.
Plant cloves that are larger in size. Smaller cloves will take up as much space in the soil when they start growing. But if the size of the clove is small, usually the onion that will be produced will have a much smaller size
Step 2. Insert each clove into the soil, with the tip of the clove facing up
Plant the cloves at a soil depth of about 5 centimeters.
The distance between each planted onion is about 20 centimeters, so that the plants can grow well
Step 3. Cover the cloves of onions that have been planted with dry grass; good choices include hay from grass or wheat stalks, dry leaves, compost, manure, or completely dry grass clippings
Step 4. Give the plant a chemical fertilizer or sprinkle it with compost
Garlic that has been planted requires fertilizer at the beginning of planting.
If you planted garlic in the fall, fertilize again in the spring. Or if you plant in the spring, apply fertilizer in the fall
Part 3 of 5: Caring for Garlic Plants
Step 1. Diligently water the garlic plants
Freshly planted garlic must be kept moist for the roots to grow. However, don't over-water it because the garlic won't grow well, or it will rot, especially if you keep watering it during the colder months.
- Water the plant once a week if it's not raining, and make sure every time you water, you provide enough water to seep into the roots. You don't need to water it too often because garlic doesn't like soggy soil. Unless, your area is experiencing drought.
- Reduce the frequency of watering periodically as the weather warms. Garlic plants need hot and dry weather for their onions to ripen.
Step 2. Get rid of the pests that attack
Insects, mice, and other pests can eat garlic or even make nests between plants. Watch out for the following pests:
- Aphids seem to like garlic leaves and flower buds. Aphids are easy to kill – you can press their bodies with your fingers.
- Most people tend to plant garlic under roses to repel aphids. Roses also benefit if the aphids do not approach the plant.
- Mice and other small pests sometimes make nests in dry grass. If you have a problem with rats in your home, use a type of dry grass that won't attract them to nest there.
Part 4 of 5: Harvesting Garlic
Step 1. Eat the stems of the scallions that grow
When the garlic plant begins to grow, the green stems called leeks will come to the surface and bend. Pick some leaves and eat them if you want.
- However, picking the stalks of garlic chives can damage onions that are growing in the soil. Therefore, do not pick the stems on all onion plants.
- Pick the scallion stems using gloves. If you don't wear gloves, your hands will smell like onions for a few days.
Step 2. Watch for signs that the onion plant is ready to be harvested
The garlic is ready to be harvested when you can feel each clove forming on the onion, and the leaves turning yellow or brown.
- It's important to harvest the garlic after the stems have started to dry out, otherwise the head of the onion will "crack" and split into separate cloves.
- Start harvesting in late summer. In most places, the harvest season can continue into autumn.
- In some places with a warmer climate, garlic can be harvested earlier.
Step 3. Remove the soil around the onion plant using a shovel
Then, pull the onions out of the ground.
- Be careful when you dig to remove the onions, because garlic can easily break.
- Wash the onions that you have harvested and let them dry in a well-ventilated area, or in the sun for a few days if it is certain that it will not rain. Don't leave the garlic outside too long, as it can burn.
Part 5 of 5: Storing Garlic
Step 1. Store garlic in a dry and cool room
Dried garlic can be stored in a special garlic storage bin, which is usually made of pottery. The cloves of garlic can be removed if necessary.
Step 2. Make coiled or braided garlic strands
Dried leek stalks can be collected and wrapped or braided into a strand that can be hung in the food storage room or in the kitchen. Besides being useful, these strands can be decorative.
Step 3. Just store the garlic or cloves in a vinegar or oil bath
However, you should store it in the refrigerator and consume it immediately to avoid bacteria that could potentially grow in it.
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WARNING: You need to be extra careful when you prepare aroma oil with garlic, or when you intend to store garlic in an oil bath. Do not store garlic in oil at room temperature, as this temperature can cause the garlic mixture in the oil to produce botulism toxins (low acidity, no oxygen in the oil, and warm temperatures) which are dangerous if eaten. The same danger also threatens if you store roasted garlic in an oil bath.
Tips
- If planted, large cloves of garlic will usually produce onions that are also large in size.
- Save a garlic or two from this year's harvest season for the cloves and replanting in the fall next year.
- If the available soil is clay, mix it with sand and plant the cloves of garlic you have. Onions can grow!
- Garlic plants can survive in cold air or climate. You can plant them in the fall, leave them in the ground for the winter, then harvest them in late summer the following year.
- Growing cloves of garlic purchased at stores or special stands for agricultural products is okay. However, you may be interested in trying to grow other varieties of onion plants. If you are interested, you can visit specialized plantations/farms that cultivate shoots of young plants or directly search the plantation's website for a wider selection of plants, including plants of different colors.
- Don't be disappointed if you find that there are small garlic harvests. You can use those onions for replanting!
- Harvest when the base of the leek stems has turned brown, but there are still five or six green stalks. These greenish stems will dry out and form thin, paper-like petals that will protect the garlic, and increase storage space.
Warning
- Don't let the onions dry out in the soil too long, or they will crack or split.
- Don't freeze onions. The onions will soften and they will become mush-like in texture, and once they are this way, they cannot be reused.
