Solo Garlic

[Robert_Brenchley]

I've just acquired some of this in a swap. Has anyone tried it? The bulbs are single, and something under 2 inches diameter. I can't find much on the net. Dos i stay single, clove when it's grown on, or what? I can't help suspecting the latter, but I could be wrong.

[Robert_Brenchley]

[Tee Gee]

New one on me but it sounds like it would want similar treatment to Elephant Garlic, but that is only an opinion!

[realfood]

Solo garlic is sold in Lidl to eat, and is just as you describe. It comes from China. My guess is that it is normal garlic that has been lifted just before it splits into cloves and dried. It is easier to peel than heads of garlic.
In previous years, I have tried planting it to see what happened. It eventually split into small cloves.

[Jayb]

New one on me too, good to know how it behaves rather than be disappointed by growing sme.

[jennym]

I think it's just garlic grown from seed, rather than putting cloves in. If you planted that undivided bulb, it would probably grow again and this time split into cloves.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Could be, though its produced commercially and I think seed would be rather slow. You can get true garlic seed, but im not sure how easy it is or whether it comes true. I think theres a thread on homegrown goodness, but im on the phone and it wouldnt be so easy to link to it. One source I looked at said they cut the shot at a particular stage to stop it cloving which may well be right. Another said its a specific variety.

[jennym]

I got some garlic seed once when I was on holiday in France a long time ago now. I'm afraid I don't remember the variety, but I know I didn't cut them to stop them. I've had a google, can't find any garlic seed for sale at all. I did shallots from seed at the same time, you can still get them.

[realfood]

Hard neck garlic produce bulbils in their "flower head". When these bulbils are planted, they produce very small rounds of garlic the next year, too small I think to be the method used by the Chinese to produce their rounds.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Bulbils typically take two years to produce anything worthwhile so I dont think thats it. These are big enough to use.