New Roses, Compost and Grasshoppers

Epazote, Gotu Kola and St. John's Wort

How to help out the Birds

Central Texas Fall Planting Guide

How to order Funeral Flowers

Gardening for Birds and Butterflies

How to grow Apples in Central Texas

How to grow Azaleas

How to grow big Onions

How to grow Pecan Trees

How to grow Salvia

Problems growing Tomatoes in hot weather

Herbs and Late Spring Gardening Tips

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Lawns and Hanging Baskets

What are common Shrub Diseases

Container Gardening

Plants for Hot Weather

December Gardening Tips

How to Grow Garlic

If you like to make incredible meals with veggies harvested from your garden, you must grow garlic. It's  easy and something you can grow during the coldest winter.

The first thing to know if you are thinking about growing garlic is there are three kinds of garlic to grow in the garden: First, there is the soft neck variety. It has more than one ring of cloves around the central stem and is the type often seen in supermarkets. It is not as cold hardy as the other varieties. Second, there is the hard or stiff-neck variety that has a single ring of cloves around the central stem. It is usually the best type for the home garden. Third, there is elephant garlic which is not a garlic at all but a type of leek. The bulbs are large and not as cold hardy as the stiff neck garlic and the flavor is mild.

Order garlic bulbs from an online dealer or buy from a local garden center. If the ground freezes during the winter where you are located, plant in fall. Otherwise, plant in fall, winter, or spring in the south. Yes, you can plant the kind you find in the grocery store. Try to use the organic kind if possible. It's cheap and there is a good chance it wasn't treated with any chemicals.

If you have bulbs, which are a group of cloves, split the cloves apart by hand and plant two inches deep and three inches apart in full sun in average garden soil with the pointed end up. Cover with a two inch layer of mulch. Be careful not to over water or the bulbs may rot. In most areas of the US, the winters are moist enough for the bulbs to take root and reproduce.

If you live in an area with warmer winters, you will see green sprouts in a few weeks. Otherwise, the sprouts appear in the spring. Allow them to grow until you see the flower stalks begin to form. Cut off the flower stalks at ground level to encourage bigger bulbs to form. Some types never produce flowers so don't worry if flowers never appear.

Dig or harvest in late spring or early summer when the tips of the leaves begin to turn brown and the tops fall over. If you wait until the entire plant is brown, then you've waited too long and bulb quality has suffered. After digging, spread the bulbs with the foliage attached on a screen in a bright well ventilated area to dry. When the necks are tight and the skins are translucent, then they are ready to store. Save some bulbs to plant the next season.

Good companions plants for garlic are lettuce and beets, Bad companions are beans and peas. Don't plant where onions were planted the previous season. For organic pest control, plant garlic in various places around the garden to help ward off pests.

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