Best Guide to Planting Garlic at Home

Garlic is considered a staple ingredient in kitchens worldwide, and there are a few reasons why it is so popular: its robust flavor and numerous health benefits. Growing garlic at home is a rewarding and upscale experience that will leave you feeling fresh. Here you will be provided with a guide on how to successfully plant garlic in your garden at home, especially for beginners who want to read about it and seasoned gardeners who want to get helpful information from it. At the end of this guide, you will get all the tools and information about planting garlic in your garden on your patch and how to be successful.

Why Grow Garlic at Home?

Before going into more details on how to grow garlic in your garden, we first need to understand why garlic should be grown at home and mention some of its benefits.

Freshness

Keep in mind that garlic grown at home is fresher and more flavorful than the market garlic because it is brought from many types of store varieties and has various chemicals on it, while you do the entire process of growing garlic at home and you know better whether you have planted it for all the health benefits or have grown it just to get more production.

Peak Flavor

Freshly harvested garlic is much more robust and much better in taste than store-bought garlic, which is stored for months and is affected by many chemicals before it reaches us. So, homemade garlic makes our home-cooked food more aromatic and delicious.

Nutritional Value

The fresher the garlic, the higher its nutritional content. Fresh garlic is packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants, which are depleted over time when we store it. That’s why you won’t find these things in the store-bought varieties. You’ll just get a bland garlic.

Immediate Use

You can harvest home-grown garlic only when you need it, which gives you a much better chance of getting the freshest bulbs possible, every time.

Cost-Effective

A single garlic bulb can produce multiple cloves, making it a budget-friendly and great gardening option.

Choosing the Right Garlic Variety

There are two types of garlic, let’s talk about them in detail.

Hard-neck garlic, which grows best in colder climates and produces a central flower stalk known as a scape, is also an edible portion that offers the most robust flavor. Then we have the soft-necked garlic, which suits warmer climates and does not produce scapes, has a longer shelf life, and is commonly used in making garlic braids. When selecting garlic for planting, avoid grocery store garlic because it is treated with growth inhibitors, which prevent it from growing as well as it would if used for storage purposes. Instead, use certified seed garlic obtained from a reputable nursery or garden center.

Preparing the Soil

Garlic prefers a well-draining, nutrient-rich soil, so by following these steps, you can prepare a planting bed for it. First, check the soil and test it, for which a kit is available. You can check the pH level with a testing kit. Garlic needs a neutral to little acidic soil with a pH of mostly six to seven, which is an average requirement. Then, amend the soil by incorporating organic matter such as compost or well-rotted manure to improve the fertility of the soil. Then add bone meal or phosphorus fertilizer to it to encourage bulb development. Ensure the drainage. If you are going to keep more water in the soil, then consider planting in raised beds or adding a little bit of sand to improve drainage.

When to Plant Garlic

Timing is very important when planting garlic. The best time to plant garlic is in the fall, especially four to six weeks before the onset of winter. This is because it allows the garlic to establish a good root system before the onset of winter dormancy. If you want to plant garlic in a warm climate, plant it early in the spring. Fall planting often gives better results, but this also depends on the season.

How to Plant Garlic

Let’s discuss the step-by-step process of how to plant garlic. First, the cloves are prepared. Separate the garlic bulb into its cloves, keeping the paper skin intact. Select the largest and healthiest clove as this produces the best bulbs. When it comes to choosing a planting location, select a sunny location that receives six to eight hours of sunlight per day and ensure that the area where you want to plant garlic is free of weeds. This also reduces competition for nutrients and water, and garlic does not have to face other factors that oppose it.

Then the cloves are to be planted. Dig a two to three inches deep hole and four to six inches wide, so the end that is facing upwards and the flat, round end down. Cover the cloves with soil and gently pat them down to remove air pockets. Watering the soil after planting, water the area quickly to settle the soil and keep the soil moist consistently so that there is no waterlogging or water shortage.

When and How to Harvest Garlic

Garlic is usually harvested in mid-summer, when seven to eight months have passed after planting, so when is the right time to harvest it? First, check the leaves and if the leaves have turned yellow and dried, and the lower leaves are visible to green in color, it means that the time for harvesting has come. Be careful while harvesting. Use a garden fork and gently loosen the soil around the bulb, and remove the bulb from the ground with the stem, and do not let them get damaged. Cure the garlic. Take down the harvested bulb in a well-ventilated way and cure the shaded area for two to three weeks. Once the outer layer dries and becomes papery, trim the roots and stems.

Storing Your Garlic

By the way, the best garlic is the one that you use fresh for your home cooking purposes, but sometimes the situation arises that due to its abundance, you need to store it, so there are a few important points for this: Choose the right location. Store garlic in a cool and dry place, and use a dark place, and there should be good ventilation. Avoid storing garlic in the refrigerator because it contains moisture and can cause it to rot. Use mesh bags. Keep the cured garlic in a mesh bag or basket so that air circulation continues. Do not store garlic in plastic bags. It traps moisture and promotes rotting.

Common Problems and Solutions

The most important issue is the pest like gnats, which includes onion maggots and nematodes. Use crop rotation and optimize the organic pest control method to minimize infestation. If diseases occur, such as fungal disease, which affects the garlic and causes white rot or rust, ensure proper spacing and avoid overwatering to minimize the incidence of diseases. Small bulbs can cause overcrowding and insufficient sunlight, so address these factors and improve bulb size for a better future harvest.

Conclusion

Understanding how to plant garlic at home is an empowering journey for the gardener, and by understanding these simple planting requirements and minimal maintenance, you can create a versatile garlic garden in your own home.

By following this beginner’s guide, you can create a satisfying and flavourful garlic garden that will yield you healthy garlic. So grab a few cloves, prepare your garden bed, and start planting today. Happy gardening.