# What kind of garlic are you planting?



## crabapple

I am tying some new varieties this year.
Blossom
China Strip
Constanza
Dushanbe
Estonian Red
Fish Lake
Georgian Fire (hot)
Italian Mountain Red
Morado Gigante
Osage
Xian
Wild Fire (hot)
I am planting the large & small cloves, even tho the small clove make smaller bulbs.
I will plant my cloves 1-1 1/2 inches deep X 6-8 inches apart in humus enriched raised beds. This can be done in pots also.
I will wait tip the garlic is 3-6 inches high then mulch with pine needle & leaves.
I am thinking of using a soaker hose until after the heavy frost, then watering once a week until Spring.
I am going to add blood mill once a month also.


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## bacpacker

Ive been lookin at some different types to try. Where did you get your bulbs from? I have been using Filaree Farms. Their quality is very good. But I'm always willing to try other companies.


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## lilmissy0740

I always get 2 soft neck and 2 hard neck varieties. I plant them and by the time I harvest, can't tell which kind I planted or which ones are which. We get ours Enon valley. 


Sent from my iPad using Survival Forum


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## crabapple

bacpacker said:


> Ive been lookin at some different types to try. Where did you get your bulbs from? I have been using Filaree Farms. Their quality is very good. But I'm always willing to try other companies.


For 4 years now i have got mine from wegrowgarlic.com.
But like most organic garlic seed supplies, they are sold out for 2014.
I have never had a problem with garlic from this farm.
I do hold Filaree Farms as a back up, but have never had to use them.


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## Toffee

I wish I could get seed or cloves, but I guess it's illegal to ship it to Idaho


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## Davarm

This year was the first year I have been able to get garlic to grow and produce well here, I planted a verity of "Elephant Garlic" I got from my dad but he's been growing it so long he no longer knows the specific verity or name.

The second verity I planted, it did very well, was from bulbs I got at a local grocery store, just found a type that had big heads with big cloves that were easy to peel - they produced exactly what I planted and was happy with them.

Gonna do the same thing again this fall.


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## nightwing

Toffee said:


> I wish I could get seed or cloves, but I guess it's illegal to ship it to Idaho


most dried / fresh Garlic will sprout notice if you keep them a green shoot will come out.

in order to grow take the bulb break it down to cloves and plant it 
I stick it in as far as my finger will push it.

If you see the shoots elsewhere stop and ask most farmers gardeners 
love to talk about growing and ask if they will let you have a bulb 
I have gotten many starts for plants this way.


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## Tucker

crabapple said:


> For 4 years now i have got mine from wegrowgarlic.com. But like most organic garlic seed supplies, they are sold out for 2014.


Wegrowgarlic is awesome but they had an awful problem with ground wasps this year so they plowed under most of their crop (per their website). They have also said that the are scaling down their garlic business and perhaps selling to the right buyer. I've copied the garlic growing and recipes from their site in case it goes away even though I've grown garlic for 10 years.

I "seeded" wegrowgarlic with a variety I found at a local farmer's market. It's called Bavarian. It is to die for. It tastes like a regular garlic when it's raw but tastes like garlic candy when it's cooked and carmelized. The original garlic came from a gypsy and galescreekgarlic bought out his entire supply. They grow all their garlic organically. I have no connection with either company; just a satisfied customer. I don't know if they have any left but I bought 6 bundles last week at the farmer's market.


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## siletz

I will be growing Inchelium Red, Music, Chesnok Red, and Nootka Rose this coming year. I get my garlic from Whistling Duck Farm (http://whistlingduckfarm.com/organic_seed_garlic.html) and Adaptive Seeds (https://www.adaptiveseeds.com/product-category/garlic-seed)


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## weedygarden

Toffee said:


> I wish I could get seed or cloves, but I guess it's illegal to ship it to Idaho


If you can buy it in the grocery store in Idaho, buy some, separate the bulbs and plant them. If you have store that carries an organic variety, even better. No, maybe I don't know what I am talking about.

Are there any seed companies in Idaho? I live in Colorado and the list of seed companies keeps growing each year. You might look a little deeper, but maybe you already have.


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## Woody

I'm in the same camp with Davarm. Years ago I bought some garlic that was great, nice and pungent, and just planted those store bought cloves. I dig them up as needed all year, never had any success at hanging and drying them. Obviously they liked the climate because I have a perpetual patch now. Yeah, you are going to get some mushy ones or ones with bugs... But dig again till you find a good one.

They get the same treatment as the herb garden. In the fall, after everything dies back, I shovel compost over them. A trace covering to an inch, maybe two in spots. It is not an exact science for me. Grab a shovel, fill the wheelbarrow, go to area, shovel broadcast it around, go get another wheelbarrow full....


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## Toffee

weedygarden said:


> If you can buy it in the grocery store in Idaho, buy some, separate the bulbs and plant them. If you have store that carries an organic variety, even better. No, maybe I don't know what I am talking about.
> 
> Are there any seed companies in Idaho? I live in Colorado and the list of seed companies keeps growing each year. You might look a little deeper, but maybe you already have.


I can get the garlic from the store, but there is no real variety and all the reputable seed companies have statements that garlic and potatoes (and sometimes onions) are not allowed to be shipped here. I assume they are afraid of diseases or some such.


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## Woody

Are you happy with the taste of the garlic you can buy at the store there? If so, that might be your only choice, to comply with the law. I went with store bought and am happy. Sure, there might be larger, or more pungent ones out there, but what I have works fine for me and where I grow it.


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## weedygarden

Toffee said:


> I can get the garlic from the store, but there is no real variety and all the reputable seed companies have statements that garlic and potatoes (and sometimes onions) are not allowed to be shipped here. I assume they are afraid of diseases or some such.


Because I should have been a research librarian, I was piqued by the idea you couldn't get garlic in Idaho, so I googled, found a company that grows garlic in Idaho and sent them an email.

This is what I said:



> Hello,
> By any chance do you sell garlic seed to home gardeners? I am having an online conversation about growing garlic and it seems that Idaho has some limitations on being able to get garlic seed.
> Thank you.


This was their response:



> Hi Weedygarden, (name changed)
> 
> I am an Idaho Certified seed grower,
> 
> Our fields are inspected, and we have excellent seed stock this year.
> 
> Idaho is a Quarantined state ~ that is so we don't get soil borne diseases like white rot into Idaho's soil.
> 
> It has become a major problem in California, Washington, Oregon and other states. Back in some of the Eastern states
> 
> The problem is yellow aster and nematodes.
> 
> Our Garlic has none of that and comes with a certificate of Nursery Inspection, so your know it's good Clean Seed stock.
> Love selling to home gardeners!
> Just send me an email listing what you want, and Lbs. and I'll get Your order going your way in a day or two.
> You can pay with PayPal or check.
> If you have any other garlic questions please feel free to send them to me.
> Have a Great Afternoon
> 
> Rose
> My Dad's Garlic
> [email protected]


http://www.mydadsgarlic.com/

Best wishes Toffee on buying some garlic "seed."

I get the nematode problem. Nematodes happen to be something I have studied with children and the idea that they can possibly be one of the reasons carrots have 2 legs, or other appendages is fascinating to some children. This was an interesting piece of information to me. Now I want to find out what yellow asters are!


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## crabapple

Rough count 20 orders,5 bulbs per order=100 bulbs.
100 bulbs with at least 5 cloves per bulb=500 cloves.
I got a random bag of 10 bulbs that some one abandoned.
So I may get a new flavor that I like.


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## Tucker

With the assistance of my 5 outdoor garden helpers (have 5 more three week old chicks inside), I got my garlic planted today. artydance: I decided to only plant elephant garlic and my absolute favorite, Bavarian. I always put bone meal in the bottom of the planting hole and will supplement with blood meal throughout the year. I will also give them my homemade supplement: salmon bones/head/tail and nettles fermented in pond water for several weeks.


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## Woody

Did you also try just some planted in your regular soil?


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## LincTex

Tucker said:


> .... and nettles fermented in pond water for several weeks.


Hmmmm? Interesting....


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## gebhardsdairy72

I was curious when is the best time too plante Garlic


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## Tucker

LincTex said:


> Hmmmm? Interesting....


Umm, yes! Have you ever tried microwaving nettles? Hint: don't try it if you value your microwave. (I will confess that after reading about this I didn't try it though.) Nettles contain a lot of minerals and the microwave will arc.

• Nettle: vitamins A, C, and K, calcium, magnesium, phosphate, phosphorus, potassium, boron, bromine, copper, iron, selenium and zinc.

Read more: http://www.motherearthliving.com/wiser-living/diy-compost-tea.aspx#ixzz3GrRl4vqj

I use the pond water because it is loaded with duckweed and fish poop. I couldn't find the exact article that led me to using both nettles and duckweed for compost tea but it was probably in/on Mother Earth News. I know that duckweed is high in protein but I'm don't recall if that was transferable to plants or if it was another property. Been doin' it for too long to remember. 



gebhardsdairy72 said:


> I was curious when is the best time too plante Garlic


I live in the PNW. If you let us know your area, perhaps someone will chime in for the best time. I believe that I've read it's 6 weeks before the first anticipated hard freeze.


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## gebhardsdairy72

I'm too late then, perhaps I can try an plant em in early spring an keep em covered through the Frost weeks.. I live in Western New York


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## gebhardsdairy72

Also I'm planning too plant 6/8 different kinds of vegetables too sell at produce auction


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## bunkerbob

*108 varieties...*

Previous post.... http://www.preparedsociety.com/forum/f14/108-varieties-garlic-20954/

Just about ready to plant, Estonian red,Transylvanian, chez Panisse(speciaty of the Chez Panisse restaurant in San Fransisco)


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## Tucker

gebhardsdairy72 said:


> I'm too late then, perhaps I can try an plant em in early spring an keep em covered through the Frost weeks.. I live in Western New York


Why not try? If you wait until next spring, you will get small bulbs. You will probably need a layer of chopped straw for protection from a hard freeze but I'm not an expert in your weather area (I'm in a Mediterranean climate so we don't get a lot of hard freezes). You might locate a copy of Growing Great Garlic by Ron Engeland (formerly of Filaree Garden) for expert advice.

You won't believe the difference between home grown garlic specialty vs. store garlic (generic variety). Take a look at wegrowgarlic.com for an idea about the different varieties available! I'm not sure where you can buy planting garlic at this late date but next July/August will be prime time to buy for fall 2015 planting.


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## crabapple

Garlic is an early Spring crop that some of us plant in the cool Fall to give the roots more time to grow, so we can get bigger bulbs/clove in late Spring/ Summer.
So you can plant garlic any time in the Fall though early Spring, if the soil is not frozen hard. As one poster put it the last day this year to plant garlic is DEC.31/2014.
I had some up in mid Sept. & some that has been in the ground only a week.


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## crabapple

I started to do a new thread.
What I have learned about growing Garlic/ any allium.
But I think this will do.
I should plant cloves about an inch deep in rich organic soil.
Mulch after the plants come up.
Keep the ground/bed damp, but not too wet.
Put bone & blood mill down in the early spring, with more compost.
Plant the plants 6 inches apart for better growth.
Harvest as soon as the bottom 1/3 to 1/2 of the blade have turned brown.
Knock on Wood, I have had not bug or disease in the four years I have been growing Garlic.

SO what did I miss?
What have you learned?


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## crabapple

It will warm up a little here in a week or two.
I will put blood mill on the garlic to give it a pick up coming out of the cold Winter.
I am not sure about lime & bone mill.
Anyone else use lime or bonemill on garlic & onions?


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## Alfred_E_Neuman

Well I honestly cannot say what kind of garlic I have as I found it growing wild out behind the barn. 
But after it flowered out I planted it back in the ground around the same area.
I did put a layer of leaves on top last fall.
Come spring I will use a mix of well composted rabbit and goat manure. See how that will do.
Thank you for this post. I find it much helpful. 
I like garlic!


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