No need to buy it — garlic is easy to grow

WILLIAMSBURG — Garlic is one of the easiest vegetables to grow, according to Master Gardener Lisa Wilson. She hasn’t bought garlic from a store in about 15 years.

Wilson talked garlic with other gardeners Sunday at Williamsburg Public Library.

Wilson began growing garlic when she saw some bulbs for sale at Seed Savers Exchange in Decorah, she said. She bought a hardneck variety.

“I was wildly successful with it.”

Hardneck garlic is hearty enough to survive Iowa winters. It produces a flowering stalk, or scape, that can be used as well as the cloves to flavor food.

Hardneck garlic produces fewer cloves per bulb. “I get three-to-five cloves on my bulbs,” said Wilson.

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It also has a stronger flavor than softneck garlic.

Inchelium Red is a softneck variety that does grow well in Iowa, said Wilson. It’s native to North America and is prized for its nutty flavor. “It will survive here if we mulch well,” said Wilson.

The softneck varieties produce 15-20 cloves per bulb, said Wilson.

Planting garlic purchased from a grocery store, which is softneck, may not produce plants because it’s treated so they won’t grow, Wilson said.

Hardneck garlic gets a long stem that produces a flower bud, Wilson said. Gardeners can cut the stem, or scape, before it flowers and use it to flavor foods, such as pesto, soups and stir fry.

Cutting the shoot off also helps the blub grow bigger because the plant isn’t using its energy to grow the shoot, said Wilson.

Rocambole garlic is a hardneck garlic with easy-to-peel cloves and a rich flavor, but it doesn’t keep as long as other garlic.

Garlic bulbs should be planted between Sept. 15 and Nov. 30, according to a planting guide from Seed Savers Exchange.

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“I use Thanksgiving as my cutoff date,” said Wilson. “I would not plant earlier than… the end of October.”

Gardeners should plant each clove, pointed side up, about two inches deep. Keep the outer skin on the cloves, and don’t separate the cloves from the bulb until planting.

Cloves should be planted six to eight inches apart. If plants are closer, the bulbs will be smaller.

“So spacing is important,” Wilson said.

Garlic needs full sun.

The area should be well mulched to keep bulbs alive through the winter and to keep weeds down. It also provides nutrients as the mulch decomposes.

Gardeners may see sprouting in early January and February, said Wilson. The plants will survive.

Plants will emerge in May, said Wilson. “They’re actually pretty plants to grow.”

Gardeners can fertilize the plants — up to May 15 but not after, according to Seed Savers Exchange — but Wilson doesn’t. “It is really a very easy, no maintenance type of plant,” she said.

When the scapes are 8 to 10 inches long, they should be cut off to encourage bulb growth. Cut the stalk above the leaves.

At the end of June or first of July, the plant will start to yellow, said Wilson. That’s when the bulbs should be harvested. If the bulbs are in the ground too long, the cloves will start to separate.

Dig the bulbs carefully, said Wilson. Don’t pull them up from the stalk.

Cure the plants with the stalks still attached until they are crispy dry, said Wilson. Keep them out of the sun. Hang them in a well-ventilated, dry garage or shed.

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After the plants are dry, cut the bulbs from the stems and cut the roots off.

Keep the largest bulbs for planting in the fall.

Garlic bulbs can be purchased from farmers markets and online, said Wilson. Most websites sell out quickly. Seed Savers usually takes orders in the spring and are sold out this time of year, Wilson said.

Val Carr, another Master Gardener who grows garlic, likes ordering from Mad River Garlic Growers, she said. Other sources mentioned by those in attendance were Johnny’s Selected Seeds and Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds.

Theisens has garlic, said Wilson, but she’s not sure what kind it is. “I don’t think it’s labeled well enough that you know what you’re getting.”

Wilson said she grew some garlic in a raised bed this year. “It did well. It turned out just like the other one.”

Gardners should monitor the soil moisture in raised beds. They tend to dry out faster.

After harvesting the garlic, Wilson stores it on plastic planters trays in her basement. Garlic needs to be stored in the dark at around 55 degrees so it won’t sprout.

Wilson’s garlic keeps for nearly a year, she said. Garlic can be frozen, but she’s never tried it.

Garlic can also be dehydrated. Gardeners can make their own minced garlic and garlic salt through the process.

Wilson grows 100 plants and gives garlic as Christmas and birthday gifts to friends and family. “[Garlic] is good for your health” said Wilson. “I personally love garlic.”