Garlic should be cured or dried before storing it for later use. Start by brushing off any soil remnants clinging to the bulbs. Do not wash them off or get the bulbs wet. Leave the stalks and roots on the bulbs while they cure.
Curing takes 10-14 days. Stems may be cut before or after curing. Curing is complete when the outer skins are dry and crispy, the neck is constricted, and the center of the cut stem is hard. Storage.
Garlic should be cured or dried before storing it for later use. Start by brushing off any soil remnants clinging to the bulbs. Do not wash them off or get the bulbs wet. Leave the stalks and roots on the bulbs while they cure.
After garlic is harvested it needs to be cured. In curing the energy from the leaves goes into the bulbs as they dry. Remove any chunks of dirt from the roots, being careful not to bruise the garlic. Leave the roots on as they have a moderating effect on the drying rate.
If left in the ground too long, the over-mature bulbs can split open, leaving them susceptible to molds and dehydration. Perhaps somewhere there are soils loose and loamy enough to enable garlic to be pulled out of the ground by the tops without tearing or breaking any stems.
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.
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.
Tie the top of the stalks with string in bundles of five to ten and hang them bulb down in a dark, dry and well-ventilated place for about three weeks. You can hang bundles from a sapling as shown in the pictures! Alternatively, lay them on a screen or an aerated shelf.
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.
Unfortunately, the only thing you can do is avoid growing garlic in the same place for three years; there's no cure for rust. Garlic can also be affected by white rot, which decays the roots and eventually the bulb. Again there is no cure apart from crop rotation.
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.
1. Store fresh garlic heads in a dry, dark place. To avoid sprouting, place your whole bulb of garlic in a dry place away from moisture and humidity. To extend its shelf life, store dry garlic in a dark place like a pantry or cupboard, preferably closer to the ground to keep cool.
The key to proper curing is providing good air circulation between the bulbs. Don't spread them out in the sun. Garlic is susceptible to sunburn and can literally cook under the sun, which deteriorates flavor. So you want to minimize the amount of direct sunlight it gets during the curing process.
It depends on how you store it and whether or not it's been peeled. A whole, unpeeled garlic head will last quite a while (about six months). An unpeeled clove that has been separated from the head, meanwhile, will stay good for about three weeks. Once you peel garlic, you're going to want to use it within a week.
Garlic can be stored in a variety of ways, such as at room temperature or in the refrigerator or freezer. For variety, you can also roast, pickle, or dehydrate it. Still, the simplest and best way to store fresh garlic is in a cool, dry place in your kitchen.
You can eat your fresh-pulled garlic whenever you want — even as soon as you're home from the farmer's market — but be sure to keep the garlic plant intact until you're ready to eat the cloves.
Tie the top of the stalks with string in bundles of five to ten and hang them bulb down in a dark, dry and well-ventilated place for about three weeks. You can hang bundles from a sapling as shown in the pictures! Alternatively, lay them on a screen or an aerated shelf.
Simply hang the garlic plants or heads of garlic—skins on—with twine in batches out of direct sunlight and in a dry place for a few months. The garlic green leaves will turn brown.
Mainly, put clean garlic in an area out of the sun with good airflow. It takes about 2-3 weeks for garlic to cure completely. It can be eaten at any time after harvest although the flavor has not completely developed.
Once the outermost layer of skin has dried, garlic plants can be bundled in groups of six to twelve, and hung (bulb end down) in an airy but protected environment like a barn, porch, or shed. If hanging the plants is not possible, try placing them in a single layer on some perforated surface or screen.
Garlic is best stored in a cool, dry area in your kitchen. A kitchen cupboard, pantry, or shady corners on your countertop are good suggestions. Many people make the mistake of refrigerating their bulbs. Refrigeration will cause them to deteriorate, and the added moisture may cause them to become moldy.