Planting garlic – timing & growing tips

The name garlic is derived from the Old High German language “klioban”, which means “to split” and is due to the split appearance of the so-called garlic cloves. Garlic grows to a height between 30 cm and 90 cm and forms green leaves up to 15 mm wide.

The description of the garlic plant

Allium Sativum is a plant with unearthly herbs and a developed onion, the actual fruit. Like an onion, this is freed from the fresh greens and can then either be used fresh or stored. The clove of garlic consists of five to twenty small side cloves that are joined together to form a bulb. Everything is surrounded by a fine white or pinkish-purple skin.

The flowers of the garlic are white or slightly pink and develop into the bulbs in small cylindrical hats after the petals fall off. There are two varieties of garlic:

  • Der Kulturknoblauch Allium sativum L. Variante sativum
  • Allium Sativum, Variante ophioscorodon

Many of these two varieties are commercially available and can be planted out in the garden in autumn or spring. In particularly mild regions, they can even be found growing in the wild.

Planting garlic

The origin of the garlic

As a cultivated plant, garlic came to Europe from Central and South Asia. He took the route across the Mediterranean, where he is as popular as in our northern regions. Its popularity as a kitchen spice and medicine dates back to ancient times. Evidence has shown that the slaves in Egypt consumed garlic when building pyramids to fight lice or intestinal parasites.

Garlic was also used as a medicinal plant by the Romans and Greeks. Here, for example, in one of the most important writings of Judaism, it was said that if he consumed it regularly:

  • Saturates the body
  • Clears the mind
  • Man strength strengthens
  • Expels parasites from the intestines

At that time there was no medicine and therefore had to make do with tried and tested and less tested means. The ancient doctor Pedanios Dioscurides also writes in a book about the many uses of garlic. These were still used up into the Middle Ages and used for the treatment of bite wounds by animals, toothache and the treatment of the plague. In earlier times garlic was used for or against many things, today its health effects are still known, but it is mostly used in the kitchen as a spice. As such, garlic is also popular in one’s own garden or even in a flower pot.

Cultivation in the garden

garlic in the garden

Many gardeners who grow fruits and vegetables on their parcel are also interested in growing garlic. These are undoubtedly the bulb lovers, or half of those who either like or dislike garlic.

There are two possible times when garlic can be planted in the garden and that is February or October (middle). Garlic that has grown over winter is not necessarily said to ripen faster, but the garlic bulbs can be a bit larger than those of the plants used in spring. This can be due to the cold stimulus that stimulates the plant to grow.

Tip:  Protect garlic planted in October from frost with a layer of mulch in winter.

Two ways to get started.

If you want to plant garlic, you will find two options. In the case of a garden neighbor who already has garlic plants in the ground, the brood bulb is either removed at the appropriate time after flowering, or a garlic bulb is stuck in the ground.

The brood onion forms small balls that are hooked into the bed and allow a small garlic plant to grow there the next year. This can also be done in a flower box or in a flower pot, but the gardener must be careful that the frost does not freeze the young plants. Always protect mobile planters from frost.

Garlic cloves that have formed a green shoot can be used to develop new plants. To do this, they are put into the ground, just as if tulip bulbs were planted. It is said that October is the best time to do this, but there are also reports that spring would be better in this case. Here, too, it depends on the exact location and location of the garden. Trying out helps with the realization and one does not have to suffer a lot of damage, except for the renouncement of the hoped-for garlic bulbs.

The preparation of the planting site

No special equipment is required for planting garlic. Garden owners are sure to have a string puller in the shed, alternatively a long cord and two end sticks are sufficient for fastening. A hole is made in the earth for each clove of garlic with a piece of wood, or a small flower trowel could be used as an alternative.

The soil of the bed in which the garlic is to be planted is well loosened. Garlic would like to grow in a loose and fertile soil, so a portion of compost soil can only be beneficial. If the bed has only moderately moist soil and is in a sunny spot, you can start planting:

  • Loosen the earth
  • Incorporate compost
  • Divide the garlic bulb into individual cloves
  • Distribute at a distance of approx. 10 cm
  • Insert about an inch deep
  • Row spacing around 45 cm

A normal blanket of earth protects the plant from premature sprouting and from too much moisture. Garlic does not like soil moisture so much, so it should not be over watered, especially when it is put in the flower pot.

Tip: Place the garlic cloves diagonally in the soil so that the water does not collect at the roots.

As with onions, garlic can also be attacked by special pests. It is also particularly susceptible to rust or powdery mildew.

Tip: Garlic is harvested when the leaf green is about halfway yellow.
garlic

What else can garlic do in the garden?

Garlic is well known for its health effects on humans. But it also has another effect than this. Its presence among other plants in the garden can make them grow healthier. Just as all plants can have both a good and a bad neighborhood, there are also places where it is better not to plant garlic.

  • Strawberries, which are very often attacked by gray mold – especially when the summer is more humid and cool than warm and sunny – find the neighborhood of garlic really great. In this case it prevents the formation of gray mold.
  • It can also be used against aphids on indoor plants, which like to eat fresh buds. To prevent this, simply stick a small clove of garlic into the potting soil in the pot. Balcony plants are also often plagued by aphids, as is potted plants in the garden. Planting garlic in between not only helps fight the pests, but also provides the healthy tuber for consumption.
Tip:  Garlic increases the scent of roses, put several cloves in the soil around the roots.

If you don’t want to use a garlic plant to ward off pests, but rather a brew – similar to that made from nettles – there is a recipe for it:

  • Crush 75 g of garlic and
  • Pour into 1 liter of water and let it steep
  • Sieve and let rest for 24 hours

This approach is diluted with water in a ratio of 1:10 and can be sprayed onto the leaves and buds of the plants. This happens on three consecutive days and is effective against blackened soot, powdery mildew and against aphids.

As part of biological plant protection, garlic can also be used against voles. The substances allicin and mercaptan contained in garlic also drive away voles if you give the brew to the plants around which voles are located.

Conclusion
Garlic is becoming more and more important in the kitchen, which also benefits the wide range of international dishes. You don’t have to endure a garlic plume, a small amount of the bulb is enough. In addition to enhancing the taste of food, garlic also has a health-promoting effect. The ingredients were already known in antiquity to “keep things tidy”, especially in the intestines. Its essential oils are good for blood vessels and are also believed to help regulate blood pressure. Garlic grows easily in the garden and can even thrive among the geraniums in the flower box. If you want more of it and want to stock up for the next winter, you can plant garlic in rows in the garden. When the leaves turn yellow, the harvest takes place.

Kira Bellingham

I'm a homes writer and editor with more than 20 years' experience in publishing. I have worked across many titles, including Ideal Home and, of course, Homes & Gardens. My day job is as Chief Group Sub Editor across the homes and interiors titles in the group. This has given me broad experience in interiors advice on just about every subject. I'm obsessed with interiors and delighted to be part of the Homes & Gardens team.

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