Late June or early July is garlic time in the garden! Garlic is planted from individual cloves in October or November. After growing eight to ten months through the winter and spring it is ready to harvest now. There is nothing more satisfying than lifting fresh garlic from cool moist soil on a summer morning!
But how do you know when garlic is ready to harvest? An early sign that garlic bulbs are maturing underground is the formation of what is called scapes or garlic flower stocks which produce seeds. Scapes will appear as long curly stems at the top of the plant in early to mid-June. It is best to remove scapes when they appear so that you redirect energy back towards bulb and clove development underground. Scapes are delicious and can be incorporated into a variety of dishes adding a mild garlic flavor!
A few weeks after you remove the scapes, continue to observe your plants looking for three or four of the lowest leaves turning a light yellow or brown while five or six of the upper leaves along the stem remain green. When these conditions occur, this is the best time to harvest your garlic, for if you postpone much longer the bulbs may split in the soil producing far less desirable cloves.
When you are ready to harvest, follow these easy steps:
1. Using a pitch fork or shovel, gently lift and loosen the soil around your bulbs being sure not to puncture or damage them. Loosening the soil beforehand is best given that the soil is usually compacted since it hasn鈥檛 been disturbed for many months. Also, simply hand pulling the stalks may cause the bulbs and stems to break apart which may prevent the garlic from curing properly.
2. Now, using your hands, gently remove the bulbs from the loose soil. This is my favorite part as the smell of fresh garlic releases from the soil!
3. Shake off or use your fingers to remove the excess soil. It is good to leave a little soil on the bulbs to aid in the curing process; however, if you have particularly muddy soil you can lightly rinse the bulbs to remove the excess.
4. Once your plants are dug up, they are ready for drying. You can either make traditional garlic braids with 6-8 plants and hang them to dry or lay the individual plants out with their full stems, leaves, and roots attached on screens so that they have good air circulation. Homemade screens can be fashioned from framing wood and hardware cloth or use turned upside down nursery flats or recycled window screens.
5. Now place them in a cool, dry, and dark spot such as a shed or a garage.
6. Allow the bulbs to cure for about four to six weeks until the outer 鈥渟kin鈥� of the bulb becomes brittle and flaky indicting that they are fully dry.
7. Once the bulbs are fully dry you can cut the roots and trim the stalk to about an inch from the bulb top.
8. Remember to save the biggest bulbs with the most cloves for re-planting in the fall. This will ensure a repeat crop and save you money as you won鈥檛 have to purchase more garlic cloves to plant again.
9. Finally, bring the remaining bulbs into the kitchen and store in a bowl on your countertop enjoying fresh garlic in your favorite dishes until you are ready to harvest again next June or July!