Hi folks,
Silly question probably ;D - I know you should really plant garlic in the autumn so it gets a cold spell in the ground, but as I haven't planted mine yet is there any reason why I shouldn't put the cloves in the freezer for a while first?
I've heard this recommended to break the dormancy of some seeds but never for garlic.
Just a thought!
Seeds have to be damp for the treatment to work, so you pot them up, and put it in the fridge pot and all. Don't use the freezer. I've never tried it, I just leave seeds in a cold frame and let time and nature take their course. Same with garlic. It's not too late to put it in for this year.
Plant the garlic up and then scatter the area with crushed ice :-)
Thats what i have been told to do, but its likly that we will get another frost soom anyway...
My next lot will go in in a couple of weeks' time with no fifflefaffle!
Sorry to repeat this - sown in February 2006 -
Lovely crop Tim - you must use a lot of garlic - lovely stuff.
Quote from: cambourne7 on January 29, 2007, 17:50:18
Plant the garlic up and then scatter the area with crushed ice :-)
Thats what i have been told to do, but its likly that we will get another frost soom anyway...
It doesn't need to freeze at all, merely to be near freezing point for a few weeks. I doubt whether it's ever frozen inside my cold frame since I planted tree paeony and Hellebore seeds, but the first has roots, and the second is well up.
If you have to plant garlic late I just put the cloves in modules of compost and leave in the greenhouse. The roots soon sprout and when the ground is right plant them out. I did this last year and I've still got some hanging in my garage.
regards Peter.
Yes come to think of it the dormancy-breaking thing was probably fridge not freezer.
Thanks all for the advice!
i have some other plants that need to go in the fridge, so i am hyjacking hubbies beer fridge for this task as its really needed in this weather!