One of the great things about blogs is the gentle reminders you get from reading everyone else's. A lot the UK blogs I follow are planting their garlic about now. I'm never normally this early but I had a spare hour the other morning and a clear spot in the garden, so I decided to get them in.
I was a little worried as I haven't got any muck to put on the plot at the moment but then I remembered the veg bed I weeded with the chickens - they manured it for me as well - it worked with my planting plan so I decided to plant them there.
I broke up three of the biggest bulbs I harvested this year and then picked out the fattest cloves. I forked over the plot and dug out the last remaining weeds, added some blood, fish and bone and then planted them about 6 inches apart.
Hopefully planting them this early will give me some big cloves next year, if I can stop the birds from pulling them out every day! My mum is off to Malvern show today (without me - I'm too busy) so I've asked her to buy me some Elephant Garlic to experiment with in the same plot, although I need to do a bit of research on it, as last time it was a flop.
Who else has got their garlic in? Anyone else grown Elephant garlic and had much success with it? - I think you have to grow it for two years to get a good harvest off it.
I always plant my garlic on bonfire night!
ReplyDeleteI have had two goes at Elephant garlic and though the cloves were large they weren't overly large and a few did nothing at all.
had a good crop of garlic this year.
Ooooh the Malvern Show. I would love to go to that!
If you ever go to the malvern show let me know as we're not far away and you can call in for a cuppa and some cake! My garlic crop was the best I've ever had and it's a good strong garlic which we like.
DeleteI've never grown Elephant Garlic, but I have eaten it and it's gorgeous. Maybe I should have planted some :-)
DeleteWe used to plant a lot of garlic when we had the allotment and although the elephant garlic is nice and big it didn't have the strong flavour of the ordinary one's. We really miss our allotment but when you get down and can't get up its time to accept you've got to give up. lol
ReplyDeleteBriony
x
Maybe it's not for us then as we like a really stronhg garljc. I might try it anyway. Hopefully I'm a few years off giving it up but you made the right choice, you should always stop doing something if it becomes a chore or is hurting you.
DeleteI discovered by accident my elephant garlic did better if I pulled it up the 2nd year instead of the first. I got very large heads then.
ReplyDeleteIf I manage to get some thats what I'll do. It's very expensive though, even just to plant it. I think I'll be tempted to sell whT we grow!
DeleteWe are about 6 weeks off picking our garlic here in Oz. The tops are looking good so hoping for some good bulbs!!
ReplyDeleteMine looked rubbish on top this year and I was worried I planted it too close together, but when I pulled it up I was really happy, over 30 good sized bulbs, should keep us in for most of ghe year hopefully.
DeleteWe plant next month or November. Last year we planted the garlic,the next day it snowed and continued snowing until April. We worried that we'd lose the garlic,but it was fine.
ReplyDeleteJane x
It's hardy stuff that garlic! We never have snow on the ground for long, in fact last winter was so mild I was worried it wouldn't divide up into cloves ( its the frost that seperates it up.)
DeleteI like garlic but I buy it all minced up in jars. I don't think anybody around here grows it.
ReplyDeleteToo bad we aren't neighbors, I'd give you so many chickens you could fill your whole back yard with poop. My chickens like to dump on my porch and my vehicles, which doesn't do me a lot of good.
I'm always on the lookout for good poop! I think we'd make good neighbours. You could teach me to shoot better and I'd get you gardening!
DeleteI like the elephant garlic for roasting and then squeeze the cooked puree from the clove onto toast- sweet and not overpowering, very tasty.
ReplyDeleteI'm sticking to regular garlic for planting.
That sounds nice! It's so expensive though, each clove to plant is about £2 and if it's got to stay in the ground for two years it's quite an investment in veg stakes!
DeleteDue to too much work elsewhere on the house and farm we are not able to plant any winter veg this year.....feel bad about not doing so....feels like we are somehow failing!
ReplyDeleteKnowing what you get up to I very much doubt that anyone would think you're failing - just go look in your pantry if you think that! I'd love to have all those canned goodies waiting to be eaten!
DeleteI've just planted some overwintering onions, shallots and garlic. If they all work out we'll have a bumper allium harvest next year. And there'll be some red onions too - I didn't grow any of those this year and really missed them.
ReplyDeleteI've given up with red onions for a few years - mine just bolt and go to seed. It's always nice that you've got a crop in the bag so to speak!
Deletehi, do you plant garlic from bulbs you've grown or do you buy in bulbs specially? I am trying to be frugal and would like to replant from this years crop...any help appreciated
ReplyDeleteThis garlic is the best of what I grew this year and then the best cloves from each of these three top bulbs. Hopefully this way my crop will improve year on year. I never plant any from the supermarket as they can be sprayed to stop them from sprouting. Being frugal is always good!
Deletethanks for that will look out my best and give it a go! I have never used supermarket ones but from places like suttons but they are sooo expensive!
DeleteThey are but if you can then keep growing from your own stock it's a good investment to buy some good ones to start with. the cost is what's putting me off with the elephant garlic to be honest. £2 a clove is a lot of money!
DeleteI tried growing Garlic and planting it in the Fall a few times but our overly wet Winters and Springs almost always made it rot in the ground before it had a chance to come back the next year.
ReplyDeleteYou have motivated me though perhaps I should try again this year in one of the raised beds...