By Frank Wertheim, University of Maine Cooperative Extension Professor, York County, Maine, frank.wertheim@maine.edu
If you have ever tasted home grown or local farm grown garlic you know it is far superior in flavor to what you can buy in the grocery store. Garlic is an easy crop to grow and planting it in October/early November will ensure you a bountiful harvest this coming July — which will keep you in home grown garlic for the entire year. Get your soil ready and give it a try.
A Word About Garlic: There are basically two types of garlic we use for culinary purposes: Hardneck and Softneck. Both grow well in Maine, but there are differences.
Hardneck: The majority of the garlic grown in the northeast is of the hardneck type, which is so noted for its stiff “neck” or stalk and large cloves. Hardneck produces a scape, which is essentially a flower stock — though usually the flowers abort and produce “bulbils,” which are tiny aerial cloves. These can be saved and planted but will take two years to produce a bulb. If you want to experiment and have a cheap source of increasing your seed stock, give the bulbils a try. Many gardeners cut the scapes off as they develop and use them in stir fries, and some believe that this results in more energy going into the bulb, though research on this is inconclusive. The number of cloves produced from a hardneck bulb are usually few in number (4-8 per bulb), but huge in size. If a large clove is what you are after, you definitely want to grow hardneck varieties. Hardneck varieties don’t store quite as long as softneck, which is why many gardeners plant both types. Good hardneck variety choices for the northeast include German Extra Hardy (a local favorite), Russian Red, Killarney Red, and Montana Giant.
Softneck: Like the name implies, softneck varieties of garlic have a more pliable stalk, produce smaller but numerous cloves per bulb (12-20), do not produce a scape, can be braided for storage, and do store better than the hardneck type. Virtually all of the garlic purchased in grocery stores is of the softneck type. However, it is not recommended to use grocery store bought bulbs for planting as the varieties come from California and China and are not adapted to Maine growing conditions. Also, grocery store garlic may be treated with a sprout inhibitor to lengthen storage life. Good softneck varieties for the northeast include New York White (the local favorite), Artichoke, and Silverskin.
Planting stock: Good sources locally are Fedco-Seeds and Johnny’s Selected Seed. Another alternative for getting a more economical source of garlic for planting is to purchase it from a local farmers market or farm stand. Locally grown garlic will be of the type hardy for this area and you can ask the farmer which varieties they have, and they won’t be treated with a sprout inhibitor
Soil Preparation: Garlic is best grown in a well drained soil as it won’t tolerate wet feet, and prefers soils high in organic matter. A raised bed would be an ideal location for growing garlic. Be sure and amend the soil with well rotted manure or, preferably, a quality compost. If possible spread 1/2 – 1 inch of compost over the entire planting area and work it into the first few inches of soil. As with most garden crops, garlic grows best when the soil pH is between 6 and 7. If you are not sure what your soil pH is, contact your local University of Maine Cooperative Extension county office for a soil test. There is still time to get a soil test done and work in the proper amount of lime if needed as you prepare the planting bed. If you amend the soil with manure or compost before planting no further fertilizer is needed until spring.
Cultural Practices:
More information on growing garlic, visit Growing Garlic in Minnesota, by University of Minnesota Extension, or Growing Garlic in the Home Garden, by Ohio State University Extension.
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Image Description: garlic; photo by Edwin Remsberg