Garlic growing tips

[weedpharma]

My plan to to take on the Chinese garlic market has had a slight setback.

Most garlic in Australia comes from China and I wanted to grow my own and more. This year I planted a couple of thousand bulbs in autumn and have now picked them. Unfortunately it was not a great success. While they all grew, they weren't as big as expected, and most did not form cloves. I had successfully grown 600 in my home garden so thought they would grow on the farm.

My vegie patch at home is sand with a bit of compost and possibly a bit alkaline as it is near the sea. The farm is clay loam with a PH of about 6.

Does anyone have suggestion why they did not grow as well.

Weedpharma

 

[2LaneCruzer]

My plan to to take on the Chinese garlic market has had a slight setback.

Most garlic in Australia comes from China and I wanted to grow my own and more. This year I planted a couple of thousand bulbs in autumn and have now picked them. Unfortunately it was not a great success. While they all grew, they weren't as big as expected, and most did not form cloves. I had successfully grown 600 in my home garden so thought they would grow on the farm.

My vegie patch at home is sand with a bit of compost and possibly a bit alkaline as it is near the sea. The farm is clay loam with a PH of about 6.

Does anyone have suggestion why they did not grow as well.

Weedpharma

Here's an interesting article that may be of some help:

tp://www.garlicfarm.ca/growing-garlic.htm

One thing I noted was that garlic may take a couple seasons to adapt to your soil and climate. I have also learned that if you want mature garlic bulbs the first year, you have to plant the cloves and not the scapes. My garlic (Elephant Garlic) has been here for probably 25 years, and it always comes up every year. I cut the tip off after they begin to mature, and harvest when the stems are dry. This year was the worst year I can remember for garlic, but the tomatoes did great! Usually the opposite. Good luck.

 

[Mousefield]

We planted garlic 3 years in a row, about 1,000 each time.
This year we planted in different beds as I understand you should not plant garlic in the same spot for more than 2 years. We have raised beds and add good composted dirt. Hard neck varieties produce a central stalk which goes straight up and then usually makes one or two loops. The garlic top is called a scape, garlic flower or top set, and contains a bulge where bulbils will form. Did you remove the scape? If not you will not get much in the way of bulbs as the growth will be in the scrapes and not the bulb. Garlic requires fairly even soil moisture during the growing season with no additional moisture during the last few weeks. The variety we grow is a Russian hard neck Chesnot Red and this year we also planted 52 hot Ukrainian cloves.

 

[Baby Grand]

Weedpharma -
What's your climate like?
We've had good luck planting cloves in sandy/clay loam in late Fall and "compost" with a thick, top layer of leaf litter from the lawns.
They start sending up sprouts through the snow in February & March.
Mmmmm. Yum.

 

[Chuck52]

I planted 150 bulbs last year and got a good yield, so I did the same this year. The original bulbs were from a friend who had several types, but most of mine seem to be the German red hard neck variety. My bed is heavily modified clay....lots of compost. I also throw on some high nitrogen fertilizer when I work the bed for the year. Big bulbs yield big heads. I've had a very few single bulb plants develop in my regular bed, though where I let some scapes go all the way to bulbils I had a number of single bulb plants develop. I've read mixed views about the effect of cutting off the scapes. I think I read that soft neck and hard neck varieties differ when it comes to the effect of letting the scapes go. OTOH, I've always cut them off. They are pretty tasty themselves, by the way. Not the developing bulb, but the green stems. They go good in stir fries and I hear they make pretty good pesto. The area where the bulbils fell a few years ago is now producing a pretty good crop of "free" garlic.

Chucl
k

 

[Egon]

There are many different types of garlic. Do some research and pick a few varieties for your growing conditions.

Check out Egyptian Onions. They are sorta intriguing and taste good.

 

[charlz]

How were they watered? I grow about 100 hardneck each year. Mine are watered by a 'shrub' type head that is basically a mini sprinkler. The garlic is in a raised bed and a single water line runs down the middle. I have noticed the ones further from the water are usually smaller than the ones closer that get more water.

In the spring I throw down some 16-16-16 fertilizer and mulch with shredded leaves that I collected/piled in the fall. This keeps the weeds down and helps keep the moisture in the soil. I always have really large bulbs. I had less large bulbs this year so I think it was an 'off' year for garlic as others have noted as well.

 

[magicheater]

I also grow garlic, I don't water, had the driest year since I started and also had the largest overall bulb size ever. The pic is the biggest of the crop, 7oz. and over 3" in diameter, chesnok variety. I grow hardneck varieties exclusively for now. I have 3200+ in the ground and have noticed a difference in emergence between varieties. I used raised beds this year after making a raised bed maker for my rototiller.

This was taken mid May

 

[moeh1]

I've noticed that the soil softness seems to influence bulb size, they grow better in the soil I've really worked on with leaves, compost, rotted manure, etc. It is now finally to the point where I can plant by hand just simply pushing the clove in the ground. Last year was my best crop ever, both soft and hardnecks. Obviously you have to work on Ph and nutrients too...

 

[magicheater]

I've noticed that the soil softness seems to influence bulb size, they grow better in the soil I've really worked on with leaves, compost, rotted manure, etc. It is now finally to the point where I can plant by hand just simply pushing the clove in the ground. Last year was my best crop ever, both soft and hardnecks. Obviously you have to work on Ph and nutrients too...

Agreed.

 

[charlz]

I've noticed that the soil softness seems to influence bulb size, they grow better in the soil I've really worked on with leaves, compost, rotted manure, etc. It is now finally to the point where I can plant by hand just simply pushing the clove in the ground. Last year was my best crop ever, both soft and hardnecks. Obviously you have to work on Ph and nutrients too...

The soil where I plant mine is also like that, just push them in. The applications of shredded leaves really helps that.

 

[weedpharma]

Thanks for the comments. I think that I will need to feed the soil with some compost and then mulch it. Next year I will be growing in a different place that looks more sandy and richer in organic matter.

The garlic I grew was a smaller hard neck type. I have no idea of type name as I got it from a friend. I did not water them at all as there was sufficient rain and reasonable water retention in the soil. The climate is the classical Meditarranean type with rain and cool temperatures over the winter. The temperatures drop to around 0deg C.

I did grow some bulbils but this does not account for the number of non segmented bulbs.

Looks like I have a job of building up the soil before the next season.

No one commented on the Ph. Does anyone know what is best?

Are the single bulbs likely to form normal segmented garlic?

Weedpharma

 

[MikeFarm]

Hiya weedpharma

I'm from Central West, NSW. I know noting about Garlic but I just searched on Google for an Aussie garlic association. Bingo; Australian Garlic Industry Association (AGIA) at Home | The Australian Garlic Industry Association Inc.

"The AGIA was incorporated in 1991 and has since devoted itself to the promotion and development of the Australian garlic industry. ... snipped ... Today, the Australian garlic industry is resurgent to consumer requests and becoming stronger as consumers return to the fresh, tasty, aromatic garlic grown throughout Australia.
The AGIA is a non profit organization run by a board of elected growers.

I presume you are already a member as you have planted what I would call a commercial quantity and I'm sure you did your research into garlic before planting - hence you'd know about the AGIA. If not I think your should join. Orgs like that are usually very helpful to new members.

Mike

 

[weedpharma]

Thanks Mike. I will have a look.

As far as being commercial, it is a long way off. My resulting crop from this season is about 2 x 20ltr buckets. I don't think the Chinese are too worried yet!!

Weedpharma

 

[Egon]

http://www.google.com/url?sa=D&q=ht..._2.htm&usg=AFQjCNG2t1G5UkWjqNI1CrEJA6b71ZHbxA

A site with a little information.

 

[charlz]

Are the single bulbs likely to form normal segmented garlic?

They should. If you grow from bulbils it is supposed to take 2 years. First year you plant the bulbil and get a single bulb, the second year you get a segmented bulb. When I have done this I mostly got segmented bulb although they were small.

Also, large cloves generally produce large bulbs. If you had planted a lot of really small cloves that might be why you got a lot of small bulbs.

 

[SPIKER]

I was told the soil needs to be worked to a soft state like it is done out west in the onion fields. A near sandy fluffy texture when initially planted. drainage with the sandy soil also needs to be good heavy clay dont drain and will ****** their growth some.
grown it a few times and have it growing along the back fence as a Hungarian variety one of my co workers brought back on a trip. it has smaller clove and a more mild taste, unfortunately the dog LOVES eating it off the back fence which means he often smells of it when he gets snacks! lol

Mark

mark

 

[charlz]

They grow a lot of onions here. They don't do anything different to the soil for onions than they do for other row crops. Not to say the soil type isn't more conducive to root crops, we mostly have silty loam and silt type soils.

The raised beds where I plant my garlic do have a lot of sand in them.

 

[OldMcDonald]

Weedpharma, One possibility is - Did you plant cloves from imported garlic? Having had a sheep and cattle station in NSW I know how fastidious the authorities are on fumigating etc. and there is a fair chance that it affects the growth.

 

[weedpharma]

Weedpharma, One possibility is - Did you plant cloves from imported garlic? Having had a sheep and cattle station in NSW I know how fastidious the authorities are on fumigating etc. and there is a fair chance that it affects the growth.

The source of the garlic originally is unknown. I got it from a friend who's father in law (of European extraction) has been growing it for many years.

Weedpharma