The
aroma of minced garlic cloves simmering in butter is about the
only thing that can distract me from gardening. Like one of Pavlov’s
dogs, I drop my trowel, drawn back to the house by an irresistible
force. My aching back and blistered hands are soothed by the
time spent with the powerful taste of garlic. Whether it’s
mixed with pasta or spread on salmon for the grill, garlic is
more than just food, it’s the flavor of life.
The easiest of all crops to grow, garlic is planted in the fall when
garden chores have slowed. Right now is the time to order your bulbs
for planting to ensure finding your favorite varieties.
One of the keys to growing garlic is starting with good bulbs. Don’t
try to plant garlic cloves from the store because they’re most
likely from California and will not survive a Pittsburgh winter.
The only way to explain the flavor of homegrown garlic to the uninitiated
is to equate it with a freshly picked garden tomato. Everyone understands
homegrown tomatoes are superior to anything in stores. The same is true
of garlic. It’s a sad day at our house when the garlic from the
garden is gone. I grow hundreds of heads a year. When you use two or
three heads (yes heads, not cloves) for a batch of pasta, you need a
lot of garlic on hand.
Garlic grows well in soil improved with organic matter like mushroom
manure or dehydrated manure or compost. Like all plants, garlic needs
a good place to grow. Good soil is what makes a green thumb.
After years of trying to grow garlic without success, I learned the proper
planting method from a colleague at the Youngstown Vindicator, where
I worked as a photographer. He said you need to start with the right
type of garlic and plant it by the dark of the moon in October. No matter
how deep you plant it, it will be 6-inches-deep when harvested. He gave
me some of his garlic, and the next spring I had deep-green sprouts poking
up through the cold soil in March. When I harvested the bulbs that summer,
they were all 6-inches-deep.
I order my garlic from Bobba-Mike’s garlic farm in Ohio (www.garlicfarm.com),
which has quality bulbs at a reasonable price. For good white garlic,
I like Music or German White. I always grow about 100 heads of Music;
it’s a strong performer even in less-than-ideal conditions. Give
it good soil and it will produce large heads of pure-white, strongly
flavored garlic.
There are almost as many different varieties of garlic as there are tomatoes.
The reds are very popular, including Spanish Roja, Red Toch and Romanian
Red, which are grown in the same way as the whites. The bulbs vary in
color, from a light pink to a deep red or purple, each one with its own
special flavor. This year’s harvest in my garden will include all
the garlic above and Persian Star, Beijing, Transylvanian, Georgian Fire
and Italian. Late this summer, I’m going to have a garlic party.
All my friends will be invited to taste and compare the different varieties.
One of the most wonderful benefits the garlic grower receives is the
spring greens—the foliage that sprouts from the bulb. Prized by
chefs, spring greens offer a complex taste, starting with a mild garlic
flavor and finishing with a kick. They are great chopped in salads or
eaten raw. I offer the greens to visitors in my garden, but few are brave
enough to try them. Those who do are hooked. Every visit to the spring
garden finds my kids and me searching for the early sprouts from the
center of the stem to nibble on.
In June, the bulb sends up its seed head, called a scape. It has to be
cut off to send energy to the bulb. It’s a shame, because the scape
is beautiful, growing straight up then curling around and forming a “P.” It’s
edible and adds interest to dishes when cooked. In July, don’t
water the garlic. It needs to dry out before harvest. When more than
50 percent of the leaves are brown, it’s time to pull the garlic.
If planted in good soil, the heads should come up with a gentle tug.
There are always a few that need to be loosened with a spading fork.
For good storage, the bulbs should be cured for about three weeks. Hang
or lay them on a screen in a warm, dry place in late summer. Garlic farms
store the harvested garlic in barns. I cure mine in my tool shed.
After the bulbs are cured, the stalks can be cut off and the bulbs stored
in mesh bags in the kitchen. If cured correctly, the bulbs will last
well into the winter. If you would like to braid the garlic, do it while
the stems are still green and pliable. Some of the heads can be pulled
aside and planted that fall.
Growing garlic is a rewarding pursuit, one I hope you will try.
|
