Garlic Planting Tips

Planting Season

• Garlic has two planting seasons depending on your climate. According to "Sunset Western Garden Book," if winters are mild where you live, plant the cloves in the fall. But if temperatures often drop below freezing in the cold season, plant garlic in early spring.

Planting Technique

• Seed shops sell garlic that's guaranteed to be disease-free. You might also be successful planting grocery-store cloves. No matter where you get the garlic from, it will come as a cluster of cloves called the mother bulb. Before planting, take the bulb apart separating it into individual cloves. You may plant all cloves, but if you plan to grow just a few, choose the larger ones. Put each one in the soil with its pointed end up.

Soil Information

• Garlic is a hungry plant. It needs rich, loamy soil that drains well. Besides, plan your garlic bed to allow for the cloves to be buried 1 inch deep and 6 inches apart from each other. If you're going to have more than one row, there should be 15 inches between each plant.

The Harvest

• Your garlic plant will be ready for picking in the summer, but not until the leafy top falls over. Instead of pulling the plant, use a garden fork to reach into the ground under the bulb to lift it out. Cut off the tops and put the bulb in a cool and dark place to air-dry before using or storing it.