Garlic can be useful in many ways, and a great addition to your meals. If you are using garlic a lot, you may consider growing it yourself. If so, you are in the right place. I am going to take you through 10 easy steps of how to successfully grow your own garlic.
- Choose a planting spot with lots of access to the sun. Ensure the soil has good drainage and lots of nutrients. You can do a soil test first if you want to see what nutrients are already present. It is generally recommended to plant garlic in the middle of fall or early spring, though you should check if it varies in your region.
- Buy fresh, organic garlic. Some people recommend that you do not buy from a supermarket and instead visit a local, organic store or garden centre. Each garlic clove will grow into a garlic plant, so take this into consideration when choosing which garlic to buy.
- Break the cloves from the garlic head. Try not to damage the clove base otherwise, it will not grow.
- Push the cloves about 5cm into the soil, tips pointing upwards. It is recommended that each clove is planted 20cm apart to avoid humidity, which may lead to an infection such as leek rust.
- Cover the planted cloves with items such as dry leaves, straw, hay, compost, or any other mulch you can think of. This will help to prevent birds from pulling up newly planted garlic.
- Fertilize the cloves after planting. Fertilize again in the spring if you are planting your garlic in autumn, or in autumn if you are planting it in the spring.
- Water once a week if there is no rain. However, garlic does not grow well in wet soil so reduce the watering as the weather warms up.
- Garlic bulbs readily harvested when you can feel the individual cloves in the bulb, and the leaves turn yellow or brown.
- Loosen the area around each garlic with a shovel before pulling it out of the ground. You should hang them up to cure for two weeks at 80°F, unwashed.
- Trim the tops and roots, ready to store in a cool, dry area. You can also store garlic leaves as a decorative braid from which to hang the garlic bulbs and store cloves in vinegar or oil. Be aware that garlic must not be stored in oil at room temperature. Make sure that you refrigerate and consume quickly.
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We hope that these 10 steps will be helpful if you decide to grow your own garlic. Good luck and happy eating. If you are successful, make sure to let us know by tagging us on Instagram!