Each clove, if planted in early spring or autumn, will produce a new head. If left to its own devices, garlic will eventually form a small clump as its bulbs spread over the years.
Garlic, like potatoes, is multiplied by vegetative reproduction rather than by sexual reproduction (seeds). Individual garlic cloves are planted and they each produce a bulb in which the cloves all have the same genetic makeup as the original clove.
Occasionally, that happens by accident. You intend to harvest garlic, but the stem snaps off or a bulb or two get forgotten in the ground. What is this? The following year, each clove of that garlic plant will send up a new sprout.
Garlic grows from individual cloves broken off from a whole bulb. Each clove will multiply in the ground, forming a new bulb that consists of 5-10 cloves.
It takes about 8 to 9 months for a small planted garlic clove to develop into a ready-to-harvest head of garlic. Yes, that means you could grow a whole human baby in the same amount of time it takes to grow a head of garlic! Don't let the timeline stop you, though.
Whether you've separated and peeled the whole thing or you just a few exposed cloves, refrigeration is going to be your best bet. Seal it up in an airtight container or zip-top bag, then toss it in the fridge.
Garlic is one of the easiest crops to grow, and learning how to grow garlic is simple. Even better, once you've grown it, you can regrow garlic year after year from your own bulbs.
What happens if you plant a whole garlic bulb? If you plant a whole garlic bulb instead of separating the head into its individual cloves and planting each separately, the plants will not have room to develop properly. The result is likely to be very small garlic plants that fail to mature into multiple cloves.
Garlic will adversely affect members of the legume family (peas and beans) and also Asparagus.
After curing, garlic can be kept in good condition for 1 to 2 months at ambient temperatures of 68 to 86 °F under low relative humidity, ie., < 75%. However, under these conditions, bulbs will eventually become soft, spongy and shriveled due to water loss.
If left in the ground too long, over-ripened garlic bulbs tend to divide and form shoots from each clove (looking like a Siamese twins version of garlic). While they're still edible, they won't last in storage and need to be used right away.
In Canada and the Northern United States, garlic is usually harvested from mid-July to mid-August depending on the region and type of garlic being grown. In warmer regions like the Southern United States, the garlic harvest can start as early as June.
Prepare the Garlic for Harvest
When the leaves begin to turn yellow and dry, usually in June or July, harvest time is near. If you planted garlic in the early spring, the harvest will come in late summer.
Each clove, if planted in early spring or autumn, will produce a new head. If left to its own devices, garlic will eventually form a small clump as its bulbs spread over the years.
To avoid disease problems, don't plant garlic in the same spot two years running. Prepare several shallow furrows in the soil that are 6 inches apart.
In climates with long growing seasons, peppers and tomatoes also are good candidates for planting after garlic or onions. In cooler climates, Chinese cabbage or bok choy may be the perfect choice.
Garlic is great to grow alongside members of the Brassica family, like kale, kohlrabi, cabbage, and cauliflower. Garlic helps to repel cabbage loopers, cabbage maggots, cabbage worms, and Japanese beetles from vulnerable crops.
Tomatoes. A nightshade like the aforementioned peppers, tomatoes benefit from growing near garlic, too. The odiferous bulbs can help to keep spider mites away from tomato plants.
It is possible to grow garlic from supermarket bulbs, but it's not recommended as there's a risk of virus infection. If you buy from proper planting stock, it should be virus free. And you can also choose a variety that has been bred especially for our climate.
As our many garlic seed customers can testify, growing garlic is exceptionally easy and rewarding. One bulb of garlic when broken into cloves and planted can reap 10-20 bulbs harvested.
“It is highly invasive and can 'steal' nutrients from turfgrass and other plants. You should remove wild garlic as quickly as possible.”
Too much water can also cause the garlic bulbs to rot. Early to mid July is the time to stop watering until it is time to harvest.
Too little water can stress plants, and too much water can cause bulb rot. In soil with ideal drainage, garlic requires between a half-inch and one inch of water per week. If it rains less than a half-inch in a week, make up the difference with supplemental watering. It is best to water deep, but infrequently.
A. Hi Lynne, the most common reason for garlic bulbs not forming is inconsistent watering, if the soil became water logged for a long time or was dry for a long period it will cause this outcome. Alternatively, if the cloves were planted to close to the surface the results can be the same.