How to Grow German Red Garlic

Choose a sunny location and check the area for drainage. Standing water will rot and kill your garlic crop. Dig a 6-inch hole and fill it with water. Allow it to drain and fill it again. If it still isn't drained within a half-hour, add sand or other grit to enhance the drainage. Plant German red garlic when soils are between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit or easily workable.

Weed the bed and use a tiller to cultivate the soil to a depth of 6 inches. Add a generous amount of compost to the soil. Spread 5 to 7 inches of compost and 3 inches of sand if the drainage test failed. Work these in thoroughly with the tiller. Use the rake to form a raised bed that is at least 5 inches high. This also improves drainage and allows the soil to warm quickly in spring, jump-starting the garlic growth.

Break apart the German red garlic bulb into separate cloves. Wear gloves while you do this. Push each clove into the soil with the blunt end first. Space the cloves 4 to 6 inches apart in rows that are 18 inches apart. Plant the cloves 2 inches deep.

Spread a thick layer of compost over the bed. Alternately, use leaf litter, straw or some other organic material. Use 3 to 4 inches in zones 8 and 9 and 8 inches for zones 3 to 7. Water the plot well to a depth of 2 or 3 inches. Only give supplemental irrigation when the top 2 to 3 inches of soil are dry.

Pull the mulch away from the bed in early spring and spread manure over the area. Cut off any flower heads as low on the stalk as possible. Don't let the garlic go to seed, or the bulbs will be too small.

Harvest when the leaves of the plants are yellow. Prior to harvest cease watering for two weeks. Pull out the plants and lay them in a shady location to cure. Alternately, tie the foliage together and hand the heads in a cool, dark place for at least two weeks. Store garlic in a cool, dry place for up to six months.