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How to choose the best garlic cloves for planting – just follow these tips!
Here’s the fourth (and last) installment in the How to Plant Garlic series and this one focuses on choosing the best garlic cloves for planting. The first article can be found here; Part 2 here; Part 3 here.
Here in Canada, we plant garlic in the Fall before the ground freezes. This lets the garlic cloves settle in and even grow a few roots. Then when the cold weather comes, the cloves go dormant for the winter.
When I wrote about harvesting Garlic, I mentioned that I sort my bulbs when I harvest.
What are the Best Garlic Cloves for Planting?
Curing Garlic
Read through the prior installments (see above) that will explain everything about harvesting and curing garlic.
I begin sorting the best looking garlic bulbs when I hang them for curing. The nice big bulbs get hung together, while the smaller bulbs get hung together. These bulbs will be eaten over the Winter (Spring & Summer too, because I plant so many heads).
Those nice big bulbs? I’ll use those ones for next years Garlic Harvest!
It’s important for me to plant the largest, nicest looking bulbs as I am always trying to improve my Garlic Harvests.
Since I sell some of my bulbs, it’s in my own best interest to ensure that as many of the bulbs as possible are big and beautiful!
If you plant small, misshapen cloves you will get Garlic heads full of small mishapen cloves.
It’s logical – if you are always trying to improve your Harvests (and you are, aren’t you?) then always use your biggest and best.
That way, you will get more of those biggest and best heads!
Choosing the Best Garlic Cloves for Planting
So, I’m ready to sort my Garlic. I’ve got several bundles of big beauties and when I’ve got a few minutes I grab the bundles and sit on the porch.
I set two empty boxes beside me and get started by opening up all the heads and separate the cloves.
All of the nice big garlic cloves go in one box – these are the bulbs that will be replanted in the garden.
The planting will take place around mid-September, in order for us to have lots of fresh Garlic next August.
Smaller cloves go in another box. These will end up in the kitchen where they will get roasted in the oven or put in tin foil on the barbecue.
I’ll use them when I make Bacon Garlic Bites or add them to my jars of Homemade Pickled Asparagus.
Look at these beautiful garlic cloves – these are the ones that will be replanted for harvesting garlic next year.
Ready for replanting? Head over to Growing Garlic Part 1, for all the planting information you need.
I hope these posts all about Growing Garlic are a help to you. Garlic is easy to grow and takes up hardly any room at all. Even if you live in an apartment, you can easily plant 20 or 30 heads of Garlic in a few pots, so do it!
Garlic is a very powerful natural antibiotic, as well as an antioxidant.
Have you learned more about growing garlic from this series of posts? Feel free to share this article!
Other How to Grow Garlic Articles:
How to Plant Garlic – garlic bed preparation, spacing and garlic planting information
What to do with Garlic Scapes – and why you really do need to remove them
How to Harvest and Cure Garlic – from digging to hanging garlic for curing.
Find your best garlic cloves for planting – then get them in the soil this Fall for bulbs next August.
Want to find out which are The 5 Easiest Vegetables to Grow?
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