Garlic Is Superb This Year

The garlic is superb...I dug and harvested the garlic a few of weeks ago. It lifted out of the soil with ease and it was so much fun to see what had been hidden away since last fall. The air filled with the fragrance of garlic...it was delightful. Look at this bounty!!!!!

Such wonderful garlic.........

I harvested about 300 bulbs. I took armloads to the gazebo and tied bunches together by variety. Then off to the shed to dry/cure...of course I had to take some to the house to use immediately...SIMPLY DELICIOUS

Well the garlic is now ready to clean...I cut off the leaves and rubbed the dirt covered outer paper like skin off to reveal the most wonderful bulbs....I placed each variety out just to admire it before taking some to bag up as gifts....Below you will see all the varieties in all their splendor...I tag each one with the name of the variety and also just a little description so the recipient knows what they are in for....enjoy the photos!!!!!

All labeled and bagged...now off to deliver.

Nothing like homegrown garlic...now if the tomatoes would just ripen!!!!!

Elizabeth

Garlic is Growing Hip Hip Hooray!!!!!

What is that curly-q thing?! It is a garlic scape...edible and cool to look at. These neat looking scapes can be added to soups, stew, chopped for stir fries, added to salads or any creation you want. They also look great in bouquets. The shape just adds another dimension to a cluster of fresh picked flowers and always lends to someone wanting to know it is...

This is a single scape...don't you just love the shape!!!!!

My garlic was throwing lots of scapes this week....I cut them off so all the energy is allowed to go to the growing cloves. the varieties heavy with scapes is Music and german White. I do leave one on as an indicator. when the "indicator " points straight up toward the sky...time to dig the garlic. When scapes appear, no more fertilizer and slowly pull back on heavy watering. Keep pulling weeds as they can deplete a garden bed of the nutrition your plant stock deserves...why feed weeds?!

The garlic bed looking through the cucumber ladders.

Isn't this just a gem of a garlic bed! OHHHH LA LA....

Just another angle of the garlic....

If you decided to plant garlic last fall...you must be as anxious as I am to see what lies beneath the soil...

Elizabeth

The Garlic is in for the Fall Planting

Yesterday the doorbell rang and there was the mailman with our delivery of garlic stock from The Garlic Store in Colorado. I ordered it last week. The folks at The Garlic Store are very helpful and the variety of garlic they have is amazing. The garlic is organically grown and they are certified as organic processors/handlers by the Colorado Dept. of Agriculture. I ordered hard neck varieties - Chesnok Red, German White, Italian Purple, Music and a new one for me Pyong Vang Korean. I also ordered two soft neck varieties Susanville and Transylvanian. While where we live in the Northeast hardneck varieties are recommended I have grown Transylvanian without a problem and the description for Susanville indicated it does well in cold climates so I figured I would give it a try.It is a thrill to open the box and see what is inside...lots of good stuff! The garlic is HUGE! WOW this is the best stock I have ever seen. Every variety is gorgeous.
I ordered three pounds of Music a variety I am particularly fond of...look at these bulbs...wonderful!
This is a bulb of Music...I placed a quarter next to it so you can see how big these bulbs are...all the garlic is firm and the cloves are bulging at the "seams".
This is German White...another tasty garlic and the bulbs are simply perfect.
All the garlic is shipped in brown paper bags and labeled with a tag that gives the variety and description of the contents.

It is a bit too warm to plant yet but I must amend the soil first. Garlic is a hearty eater and can deplete the soil where it has "lived and grown". It likes a near neutral pH (~6.5 - 7.5). It also likes well aged manure to provide nitrogen and a source of phosphorus in the form of bone meal. So I need to get my garlic garden bed up to par for these beauties to grow in.

If you have a little extra space in your garden...try growing garlic...it needs little care and the results are so fantastic!

Elizabeth

Garlic Harvest

This is the time of year that garlic is mature and must be picked and dried. There really is nothing better than homegrown garlic. Once you have grown your own using store bought is simply a step down. Come on into our storage shed to see some of our garlic bounty.

This is some of the garlic all dug from the garden and tied together and labeled so we know which variety we are eating. We store the garlic in old gladiola boxes. Gladiola bulb must be dug up in the fall and stored inside so we have these old commercial boxes from Europe that have screen bottoms and are perfect for garlic as well. Some garlic is delicious raw and in dips and some is better in cooked dishes. Once you develop a taste for the hotter varieties you can throw caution to wind and just eat any kind without holding back!

Once the garlic is nice and dry, we just gently rub the dirt off and the bulb is nice and white and clean. Some varieties have red in them such as German Red or Chesnok Red. When you slice into your fresh garlic it actually is so moist you can see the moisture almost pouring out of it...that is why it is so flavorful. We save some of the bigger heads to use for next years crop. It really is simple to grow. Take a bulb and divide the cloves from it. Plant a clove in each hole about 2-3 inches deep in the fall at the same time you are planting daffodils or tulips. Pretreat your soil with compost and manure as garlic is a heavy feeder. Mark each row so you know what you have. Cover your garlic bed with 2-3 inches of peat moss...this protects your garlic over the cold weather months and actually helps with weed control in the spring as well as moisture control. It is recommended that in colder climates that hard neck varieties be used. Don't get too worried if you see spikes of green popping up in the fall or warm winter spells it will not hurt your crop. In the spring continue to feed these hungry plants till about June. You will these incredibly cool curly spikes come form your plants...these are called scapes. The scapes are good to eat but I love to mix them with flower bouquets...I was advised to cut all the scapes off once they come and leave just on to use as an indicator. When this one scape stands up straight as an arrow this is when it is time to dig your garlic. I have found this to be a far more reliable indicator than judging when the leaves have browned and dried enough.
I am particularly fond of Music...this garlic has a wonderful flavor in all foods. This past weekend I made a boursin style cheese spread with fresh garlic from the garden and loads of fresh picked herbs (parsley, thyme, basil, oregano and chives) all added to cream cheese and a little butter with a touch of salt and fresh lemon juice all mixed in the food processor...suffice it to say none was leftover...the flavor of the garlic was delightful.

This is a wonderful old hornet's nest my nephew discovered and retrieved one fall on our island. He sure had a keen eye as it was very discretely hidden in the tree. We kept it hung in the greenhouse and then hung it in the shed. It has stored well here and hangs over the garlic, so thought I would take a picture and share it when I was doing the garlic. I love to look at it and I always think of Seth when I see it.

Guess you know what we are having for lunch today...fresh picked tomatoes and basil from the garden...the vinaigrette will of course have some fresh garlic in it topped with slender curls of parmeggiano reggiano...life doesn't get better than this.

Hope your garden is doing well...a garden is good for your health and good for your heart...I always feel so good when I come into the house with a basket full of fresh picked goodies...

Elizabeth