Garlic is not only good for you but also tastes great in food so why not grow your own? Its the time of year to make a start on growing your garlic, Dan our resident expert has put together some easy to follow instructions on how to ....
Preparing to grow the garlic
All you need to do is buy some fresh garlic with large cloves, avoid any that have gone soft. Each clove from the garlic bulb can sprout into a garlic plant
Break the cloves from the fresh garlic head place them in soil/compost in a shallow tray and allow them to sprout (Dan is demonstrating above!)
Once the garlic has a decent sprout push each clove into the soil with the tip facing up. Plant about 2 inches (5cm) deep and 8 inches (20cm) apart
Cover the planted cloves with mulch (Suitable toppings include hay, dry leaves, straw, compost, well rotted manure, or well rotted grass clippings)
Caring for garlic Plants
Newly planted garlic needs to be kept moist to help the roots to grow but do not over water, as wet garlic does not grow well,and may even rot.
Water deeply once a week but only if there has been no rain. Garlic hates wet soil.
As the weather warms up reduce the watering, the garlic needs hot and dry weather to allow the bulbs to mature
Harvesting the garlic
Garlic is very cold-hardy. You can plant it in the Autumn, leave it in the ground over the winter and harvest it at the end of the next summer. The garlic is ready to be harvested when you can feel the individual cloves in the bulb, and the leaves turn yellow or brown.
Loosen the area around each bulb and pull the bulbs out of the ground.
Keep the plant as it is and do not wash. Hang it up to for two weeks. Once ready the outer flaky layers of the bulb can be brushed off, leaving clean skin below. Trim the tops and the roots, and store in a cool, dry place.
Why not have a try? Its all about it experimenting and enjoying it.
Let us know how you get on and send us a picture!
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