when is my garlic ready?

[antipodes]

In the last 10 days the garlic stalks have gone progressively yellow and started to dry. They had rust quite recently but not too badly. Does this mean they might be ready? They were locally grown cloves, planted in November.

[antipodes]

[katynewbie]

Usually if they are doing that, it means they are ready. Dig one up and have a look...I dare you! Let us know?

;)

[Biscombe]

Do you have any flower shoots (ajetes in Spain) If so pull them out, and fry and eat with scrambled egg as the Spanish do! yummy! as soon as we spot the flower shoots and the plants start to die back a little AND rust starts we pull em up, hope this helps  :)

[Robert_Brenchley]

I wait until about ten percent of the stems have fallen over, then lift them. You won't be very far ahead of me.

[Chris Graham]

I planted mine in February and lifted one at the weekend there.  It hasnt divided yet and I'm unsure if it will due to probably not getting enough cold treatment.

Could these still divided later in the year?

[GodfreyRob]

I did not dig mine up until August last year - so there is plenty of time for them to get bigger...

[STEVEB]

Planted mine in november just starting to do the curly wurly flower stem thingy,leaves yellowing ill give them a good feed for a few weeks yet.

[antipodes]

OK garlic experts - yesterday I pulled one up to see. It still seems quite tender inside, the skin is still fresh and moist, but it HAS formed cloves, about 7 - ok it is not huge but they seem quite sweet small bulbs, at least a few cloves from each one will be good I think.
DO I leave it in a couple more weeks to mature and dry out? What do I do when I harvest it? leave it in the sun???
I am dead chuffed to have some because no one else on my lot grows it, they say "you can't grow garlic here" so if I prove them wrong I will feel victorious  ;D

PS no one overwinters it, I reckon that is the key

[Hyacinth]

No expert me, but.....what I'd do is say "YEAH!!! SUCCESS!! Werewolves and sceptics, Bring it On!!!!"

2nd thing....leave for another couple of weeks or so in the ground....

3rd thing....when you dig it up, sure, leave it out in the sun (or somewhere dry anyway, if inclement weather :-\).....and don't cut down the leaves, cos these you'll need to plait them together.....if you don't know how to plait and haven't a handy long-haired child to practice on, sure I can fish out instructions somewhere, or someone else can?

8) 8) 8).....great feeling, innit, to get a goodly crop? :)

[Old bird]

Hi all!

Mine had just gone yellow and wispy and I dug the whole lot up - some of them were just beginning to get white rot (onion rot) round the roots and I think I caught them just in time. 

I think leaving them in when the plants have stopped growing is counter productive as the idea is to get them out and dried as soon as poss - before there is a chance they get rained on and start rotting! I have found that they are not similar to onions where you leave them with the leaves lying down for a week or two to encourage the bulbs to bulk out - so to speak!

Mine is certainly better than last year's crop - and this year was the first time I planted in November/December!

Well done antipodes - one would have thought that out there in France isn't it where you live that they would have fields full of them!! 

Old Bird

;D

[Robert_Brenchley]

Burn the ones with white rot, it's too risky to leave them around.

[Kea]

i had a poke around under mine today and found that I may have decent sized cloves this year...maybe the pre-chilling in the fridge worked. ;D

[antipodes]

Yeah Garlic is associated with the French and they do eat lots of it!!!
But it doesn't always grow in all areas, it is mostly grown in the south.
I think that most things grow anywhere if you choose the right variety and you give protection where needed! The others grow oinons etc with success, why would garlic be different???

That's why I deliberately bought my cloves from a local market farmer who grows them in this area. Maybe I should ask him how he does it???
In any case I think I will just leave them for another week or two until all the stems are well dried. Then dig them up and shelter them somewhere.

Crops are much better this year than last, anyway ;)

[Deb P]

Despite the rust........one third of the crop in already! Not bad... ;D

[lolabelle]

wow thats impressive garlic  ;D

[Old bird]

Brilliant Deb!

Certainly better than mine - and how neat you are!

Well done!

Old Bird

[allaboutliverpool]

Have a look at my site to see last years disaster.

Rust and damp ensured a poor crop.

http://www.allaboutliverpool.com/allaboutallotments_Vegetables_garlic.html

[carolinej]

Rust taking over my plants :(

I dug one up, and it is tiny. I think I will pull a few and leave the rest to see how they develop.

cj :)

[Barnowl]

Rust taking over my plants :(

I dug one up, and it is tiny. I think I will pull a few and leave the rest to see how they develop.

cj :)

Ditto

[Lindsay]

I've just dug mine up as the rust was starting.  Last year I overwintered the garlic, and it didn't work, so this year I planted in the spring.   

What I don't understand though is why some of the garlic have swollen and produced large cloves, and others in the same bed have stayed small. The bed was only about 3m by 1m (not big enough!) - and it all got the same treatment.  Any ideas?   ???

However, it tastes delicious - so sweet - so what the heck!   :)