Hi all
I have recieved some Elephant Garlic bulbs from the Garlic Farm (UK) on the Isle of Wight (famous garlic festival being held there very soon)
My question is how to store them until I am ready to plant. I live in a zone 10 area and weather will be WARM until about end of October. Do I keep them in a dark dry place in this warm weather or do I need to store them refrigerated until planting. When should I be planting them in a zone 10 area?
Ideally I shold have ordered them for an October delivery but I didn't think that far ahead!!!!! Too impatient.
Thanks for any advice.
Lizzy
Elephant Garlic
Yes, store them in a fairly dry (60-70% humidity) and "warmish" area, preferably around 50 degrees F if possible. If you store them too cold they'll either begin sprouting or the extreme cold (32ºF and below) will have an affect on their bulbing up when growing. At the other end of the temperature spectrum, if stored too hot they'll become squishy too soon.
As for planting them, I plant ours here in Zone 7 around November. (I could plant in October but never get around to it!) For your Zone 10, I'm not familiar with your Winters and such but feel you could easily set them out after your first frost but before your ground freezes and they'll be fine. You mainly want them to establish some roots before the hard freezes come on for the Winter.
Shoe.
PS...Perhaps a "Zone 10" DGer will come forth with their planting dates.
Shoe
Such helpful advice - its great to hear the reasoning behind the methods. Thank you very much. I will keep them in a north-facing outdoor cupboard. That's probably as cool as we get without refrigeration this time of year.
Lizzy
Great! And be sure to check them from time to time so if any begin to get rotten/squishy you can remove them from the others. Also, opening the cupboard from time to time will allow them to have some fresh air/ventilation.
Wishing you a bumper crop, Lizzy!
Shoe.
Thank you so much Shoe!
Show, in zone 6 when is the best time to plant garlic? Gonna do this for the first time this year.
I was waiting for someone with more knowledge to answer your question but I think garlic and elephant garlic would be treated in the same way so going by Shoes estimate for Zone 7...I wouldsay October/ November.
Howdy, defoe! Sorry, I'm tardy! :>)
Yep, as Lizzy says, garlic and elephant garlic are treated the same for planting out.
I can't remember if you are in the upper-east side of Ky or over by the far west side. (Seems like there are two different climates between those two areas!) I think you'll be fine going by your frost date in your area; plant after the first frost and before your hard Winter and you'll be fine. If it were me I'd prepare the soil and have it ready for planting then after you have a nice frost go ahead and plant the cloves.
Garlic! Yum! "It's chic to reek, of garlique!"
Shoe.
Shoe, maybe if I had spelled your name right,you would have responded sooner. LOL. Thanks for the info, and I will be planting after the first frost.
Elephant Garlic is actually a bulbing leek, and not a garlic at all. However, they are grown and used just like garlic, and are usually much milder to taste. I plant my garlic and Elephant garlic around Columbus Day each October here in zone 6 of the wilds of Washington State. I could just as easily plant them in mid-November and they'd be just fine. I do think it's important to get them in the ground before any hard freeze though.
I will be giving this a try as well. Someone had mentioned about trimming them in the spring when they start to grow???
I've never heard of the trimming process with garlic or Elephant garlic. However, later in their growth, hard-neck garlic and Elephant garlic send up a flower bulblet. These should be removed so that the plant's energy is directed to the underground bulb and not to the flower head.
I think that is what my friend was referring to - thank you Lettuceman
Yes, and when you trim those "scapes" off they are great in stir-fry dishes, salads (chop finely), salad dressings, etc! Yummy!
Shoe.
mmmm - sounds good!
Shoe, another question, really several questions. Who do you buy your planting stock from? I am in Zone 6, I am north central Ky, and probably as true a zone 6 as it comes. What varieties would you suggest for a first time grower. We like garlic in just about anything but chocolate!!, but prefer a mild taste, as opposed to one that SHOUTS! Could you help with suggestions? Oh, to have a good supply how much do I need to plant? This is a 2 person household, so just a moderate amount is needed. Thanks in advance for your suggestions.
Bonnie
Howdy, Ma'am!
Actually, I'm going to "go against the grain" of purist garlic growers (or at least the majority of them!) and spill it. For over 15 years the majority of the garlic stock I've grown has come from the grocery store. It tends to go on sale in the Fall of the year, just before planting time and I buy it up!
"Grocery Store" garlic is usually "California White" (or one of the the other 'California' vaireties) and does extremely well here in Zone 7. I'd even recommend it for your zone as well, defoecat (zone 6).
Certain garlics are geared towards either long winters/short winters, hot weather/cool weather (active growing season) so those factors should be kept in mind if ordering certain types. However, I'd not hesitate to recommend Calif White for first-time garlic growers in zones 6 -8.
Some of the more "fine-tuned" varieties will need to be judged according to their characteristics. (For example a "cajun" variety will handle the extreme heat and short winters much better than a garlic that is more acclimated to northern climes).
Recently, while ordering some green cotton seeds from SESE I just had to try out some of their garlic offerings and included in my order some Inchelium Red and also some French Silverskin just to once again try some different kinds. (Those, to me, were a bit expensive but I decided to order them and use them mainly as seed stock for future plantings and getting my money back on them!) (I'm a miser, ya know!)
As for the mild taste you mentioned, I'd definitely go for some Calif White/Grocery store garlic...that is what most people are used to and there is no doubt you will have good success with it.
As for how much to plant that will be up to you. Each clove planted will make a bulb (of many more cloves). While cruising the Produce Section of your grocery store just remember that each clove planted will produce a full bulb of many cloves. (When I pick out the bulbs I pick the bulbs that have the biggest cloves, not necessarily the most. Planting the biggest cloves (usually on the outside of the bulb) will begat you with bigger bulbs at harvest time. (The smaller inside cloves can be used in the kitchen so use them when you buy them.) To be more precise, don't just buy a "big bulb" cus it's big...buy a bulb because it offers big cloves. You'll see the difference when you are shopping.
Hope I haven't confused ya!
Shoe.
Ah yes...Garlic. Tasty! Heathy! Anti-oxidant! Keeps vampires and strangers at bay! Excellent for stews, pasta's, sauces, beans, french bread/garlic bread, wonderful with olive oil and dashed on grilled veggies/meats/seafood, etc. It don't get no better!
Thanks shoe. No you haven't confused me, I guess, I will just jump in and plant it and hope that it does well. Since we eat plenty of it, it has got to be cheaper to grow than to buy at the grocery.
Chocolate Covered Garlic Slivers
Take small slender garlic cloves, or sliver larger cloves
Marinate in Amaretto overnight
Shake dry and dip into melted chocolate
Roll in nuts
Let dry
Enjoy!
I guess you have to REALLY like chocolate and REALLY like garlic for this to work, but I made this recipe for a garlic cooking class, and it was surprisingly good.
Is it true for all garlic, then? Wait for first frost and then plant before hard frost or heavy snow? I'd better get a move on. We've had heavy blizzards as early as September 10. Anyone want to recommend a garlic source for planting garlic?
WH - that combo sounds too weird not to try!!!!!!