Garlic is one of Mother Nature's most versatile herbs, with qualities both culinary and medicinal. It's one of the easiest plants you can grow. True aficionados of garlic claim that once you've tasted the homegrown version, you'll never eat a store-bought bulb again.

Plant Constant

Soil PH:                        5.0 to 8.0 but grows best in 6.2 to 6.8
Soil Type:                     Sunny, well drained
Planting Season:           Late Fall   
Planting Depth:             1 in    
Plant Spacing:              4 in
Row Spacing:               18 in  
Plant Height:                18 to 24 in
Days to Germinate:       2 to 3 months
Sun:                             Full
Days to Harvest:           8 months

Plant Characteristics
Garlic is a member of the allium family which also includes leeks, shallots and onions. Individual cloves act as seeds. The bulbs grow underground and the leaves shoot in to the air.

Garlic is grown from the individual cloves. Each clove will produce one plant with a single bulb which may in turn contain up to twenty cloves. Growing garlic is therefore self-sustaining.

When to Plant
It is traditional to plant garlic on the shortest day of the year. Whether this is for symbolic or practical reasons is unclear. Usually garlic should be planted 2 weeks before the first expected frost.

Soil Preparation
When planting garlic, choose a garden site that gets plenty of sun. Remove all traces of weeds; they'll easily win out over garlic. Dig to a depth of 8 to 12 inches, and amend the soil with plenty of compost to ensure the ideal combination of fertility, good drainage and moisture retention.

Planting
Separate small and large cloves. Small cloves will not give you good garlic, so use them in the kitchen and plat the big cloves. The cloves should be planted individually, upright (pointed end upwards) and about an inch (25 mm) under the surface. Plant the cloves about 4 inches (100 mm) apart. Rows should be about 18 inches (450 mm) apart. Cover the newly planted cloves with dead leaves or straws. This will help to keep the soil moist and protect the cloves from freezing temperatures.

Caring
Remove weed as you see them. During the growing season remove (rogue) garlic plants that are not doing well and send suspicious plants to the dump.

Harvesting
As garlic reaches maturity, the leaves will brown then die away. This is the cue that it is time to harvest your garlic crop. If you harvest too early the cloves will be very small, too late and the bulb will have split.

Proper handling of garlic after it's been picked is almost as important as looking after it whilst it's growing. It's essential that garlic is dried properly, otherwise it will rot. The bulbs are often hung up in a cool, dry place. After a week or so, take them down and brush the dirt off gently - don't wash the bulbs at this stage.

Subsequent Crops
Plant the next season crop from cloves.