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 Post subject: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 10:29 pm 
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Anyone else harvest their garlic recently? I harvested 119 heads on 7-9 - a little early, but severe thunderstorms were forecast AGAIN for the following days, so I dug them up a little early. They were much better than I expected, since the last time we had non-stop rain early in the season like this, the skins were more or less gone. As always, the Music did the best, and I got 52 stalks from just planting 46 cloves! Only one clove did not sprout, and 7 got double heads, and they weren't small, by any means. I had some other varieties I planted just 4-5 cloves of, but the Music and German White did better. I also got a single clove head of Estonian red in a trade, and that grew into a large, 2 clove head, so I had to order a small amount of that one, so see if it does as well next season.

Needless to say, I won't be having any problems with vampires in my house. :mrgreen:

Tomatoes aren't doing nearly as well, as they really didn't like the 25" of rain we got in June. And now, 7 days of 90+ temps. At least the peppers like it!

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Mon Jul 15, 2013 11:07 pm 
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Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2011 8:05 pm
Posts: 1191
Location: Chico, CA
At the risk of sounding as ignorant as I am, did I understand that you planted regular cloves and got a new plant? If so, on the ground or in a pot?

The strange weather has also affected our tomatoes. They were planted staggered, but I think the smaller than usual crop will come in all at once. So far we've had one on the smallish side.

OTOH, the squash is producing as usual from just one each crooked neck and zucchini, we had about 20 so far. Melons will be ripe in a day or so. Cubanelle pepper has produced a couple from one plant. We even had a small bowl of blueberries from a 1 yr. old bush. All herbs are super happy, especially the one lemongrass plant which went from a tiny pot from Lowe's to a 9" and is now in a huge pot. I won't care if I use any, it is a really pretty plant. I wish we had enough sun in the front, we could use it there. Of course, the only thing that won't thrive is the Italian Parsley (even the one tiny cilantro repotted into a 9" is doing great).

Are you going to freeze the garlic or just store the heads?

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Tue Jul 16, 2013 8:26 am 
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Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2009 3:54 pm
Posts: 1165
Location: New York
I'm harvesting my garlic this weekend. I planted 16 cloves and all have grown nicely. I'm still harvesting my shallots - I planted 16 shallot cloves and have harvested 41 so far, with about 12 to go! They are all nice and large too - a banner shallot year! Hopefully the garlic will follow suit. I only planted Music and German White this time - they last the longest for me.


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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Tue Jul 16, 2013 12:45 pm 
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Sadly, the only garlic harvesting I do is from my fridge when the cloves start to sprout....

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Tue Jul 16, 2013 4:18 pm 
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Alina,

I plant approx 130 cloves of garlic every year, and, while I could plant more, then use part of the harvest to plant next year's crop, I prefer to order some seed garlic, and I have tried many varieties through the years. I plant only hardnecks, as they have far fewer and much larger cloves, plus, they are easier to harvest. The two most important factors for choosing a garlic, IMO, is the size of the heads (and the cloves, as well), and how long they can be stored. Of course, flavor is a factor, but I really haven't found any so mild I wouldn't grow them again - all have been quite potent!

As Nancy noted the German white and music store well. They are porcelain garlics, which store better than any other hardnecks. One year, as an experiment, I tried storing several varieties as long as I could, before they started degrading, and German white stored a year, and only had a hint of green sprouting started!

Metechi - a marbled purple stripe variety - is another garlic I usually plant with music, but I waited too long to order last year, and it was sold out everywhere! When that happens - and that wasn't the first time - I order the German white, so no great loss

I till about a 45' row, about 2 1/2' wide, then, using an old tape measure placed down the center, I plant them in a zigzag about 4" on either side of it, and 5" apart - easy to do, as I just look for all the fives and zeros. The part left over at the end is where I plant the shallots, 6" apart for those. It is very easy to push the garlic and shallots into the fluffy, freshly tilled soil. Come spring, I put a strip of T-tape down the center of the two rows, for irrigation. Didn't need that much this year!

I store the garlic in my basement, first, when curing for about 3 weeks, with the stalks and roots still attached. When curing is finished, I cut the
stalks and roots off, peel the outer skin, to clean them up, then store them in net bags, hanging in the basement again. I keep my nose out for a bad clove of garlic that occasionally develops, then get that head, remove the bad clove, and use the rest of the head quickly.

I recently bought 6 heads of garlic, just before harvest - the only garlic I have bought since last harvest!

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Wed Jul 17, 2013 2:50 am 
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Joined: Sat Nov 12, 2011 8:05 pm
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Location: Chico, CA
Thank you so much. I've saved the info for DH for next year. I would love to have shallots as well. Thanks again.

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Wed Jul 17, 2013 10:11 pm 
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Location: Portland, OR
Dave,

Good gravy! You know, I use a lot of garlic, but I doubt I personally use 119 heads a year.

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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 6:23 pm 
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Joined: Tue Jan 06, 2009 3:54 pm
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Location: New York
Harvested all my garlic and shallots 2 weeks ago and sorry, I was wrong, I only planted 12 garlic but they are beautiful, large heads. But my shallots, OMG, what a banner year!!! 16 yielded 85!!! And all but a handful are the size of walnuts. Very happy, to say the least :D


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 Post subject: Re: Garlic harvest
PostPosted: Mon Aug 05, 2013 10:47 pm 
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Amazing how many you get from a small number of shallots! That's why I plant mine farther apart, for sure.

I just turned over my garlic row, getting it ready for greens this fall, and found a bunch of shallots I missed! I always watch for them while I'm running the tiller in that area.

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