🧄 Garlic

Garlic is one of the easiest crops to grow, and home-grown bulbs have a sweeter, fresher taste than supermarket ones. A single clove planted in autumn becomes a full bulb by early summer, and garlic is useful in the kitchen all year round.

There are two main types: hardneck varieties, which have a flowering stem and often better flavour but store for fewer months, and softneck varieties, which store for longer and can be plaited. Garlic needs a cold spell to form bulbs, so autumn planting is usually best in the UK.

Types and varieties

There are two main kinds of garlic, which suit different growing and storage needs.

Plant cloves from October to November in well-drained, fertile soil in full sun; heavy, wet soil makes them rot, so improve it with grit or plant on a ridge. Break up the bulbs just before planting and plant the largest outer cloves. Set each clove with the pointed end up, 2.5–5 cm deep, 15 cm apart in rows 25–30 cm apart.

In a cold or wet area, start cloves in modules in a cold frame or greenhouse in November and plant out in spring. February and March plantings are possible, but the bulbs will be smaller. Always buy certified garlic for planting, because supermarket bulbs may carry disease and are not suited to British growing conditions.

Top tips

• Plant certified, UK-grown garlic, not supermarket bulbs.
• Plant with the pointed end up.
• Use raised beds or ridges in heavy soil.
• Net or fleece new plantings if birds pull out cloves.

Garlic needs little attention. Keep the bed weed-free, as garlic is a poor competitor, and water in dry spells during spring until the bulbs start to swell in early summer, then stop. A feed of general fertiliser in spring helps strong growth, but avoid high nitrogen later in the season.

Hardnecks send up a flower stem in early summer; cut off the curly scape when it appears, which redirects energy to the bulb, and enjoy the scapes in cooking. The main problems are garlic rust, which appears as orange pustules on the leaves, and white rot. Wide spacing, good air flow and crop rotation help prevent both.

Top tips

• Remove hardneck scapes for bigger bulbs.
• Stop watering once the leaves begin to yellow.
• Wide spacing reduces rust.
• Rotate with a three- or four-year gap to prevent white rot.

Watch out for

Garlic rustOnion white rotLeek mothBirds pulling up cloves

Lift bulbs between June and August when the lower leaves have turned yellow and brown but the top few leaves are still green. Check a test bulb: it should be plump with firm, well-formed cloves. Loosen the soil with a fork and lift carefully without bruising.

Dry the bulbs in a warm, airy, shaded place for two to three weeks, with the leaves still attached, hanging them in bundles or laying them on racks. Garlic dried in direct strong sun can scorch. They are ready to store when the outer skins are papery and the stems are dry.

Top tips

• Harvest before the leaves die completely, as the skins split.
• Dry in the shade, not direct sun.
• Handle gently; bruised bulbs do not store.
• Save the best bulb for planting next autumn.

Use garlic crushed, sliced or roasted whole until sweet and spreadable. Fresh, wet garlic eaten shortly after lifting is milder and juicier. Young green garlic can be used like spring onion in spring, and hardneck scapes are good in stir-fries, pesto and omelettes.

Store cured bulbs in a cool, dry, airy place at 5–15°C: softnecks keep for six to eight months, often longer if plaited into ropes, and hardnecks for three to five. Do not store in the fridge, which can trigger sprouting. Peeled cloves can be frozen or preserved in oil in the fridge for up to a week.

Top tips

• Plait softneck garlic into ropes for attractive storage.
• Roast whole bulbs at 180°C for about 40 minutes.
• Use hardneck scapes in pesto and stir-fries.
• Keep out of the fridge to prevent sprouting.