Growing Garlic/Shallots

[Augustmomx2]

I am really wanting to grow my own garlic & shallots, but I have never done a cold-season crop...do I have to wait until the fall to plant or can I do it now? I live in Indiana and wasn't sure if with my weather, I should wait until fall. I have read a few things on different websites, but I know you guys are the experts

Also, someone mentioned I should not plant garlic w/my other veggies as they would take on the taste of garlic as well. Is that true? TIA!

 

[digitS']

I "think" you can plant garlic now and just divide it or leave it at the end of the growing season. How's that for an expert? I haven't grown garlic for a few years and never planted anytime other than the fall.

Shallots I know - 'cept I don't know if I could get away with planting them the same time as the garlic. (See note re: "expert" above ) I was trying to remember how long I've grown shallots each and every growing season - really like the little things . It must be about 20 years.

I've always lifted all the shallot bulbs as the growing season begins to cool during late summer. These are stored in an unheated garage thru the winter. Since it freezes in there - I assume that the shallots would be okay outdoors thru a zone 5 winter . . . no promises, there.

Oh, and these things imparting their flavor to the veggies growing around them - can hardly believe that.

Shallots planted in the spring and garlic planted in the fall - that's how I've done it. Never a hitch. The reverse may also work somewhat but . . . I'm no expert!

Steve

 

[patandchickens]

Dunno bout shallots.

Garlic you are better off planting in the fall but if you have garden space then it won't hurt to pop a bulb's worth of cloves into the ground as soon as the ground is workable (you could 'push' the ground a bit by covering it with clear plastic for a few weeks first, if you want). You may or may not get decent cloves out of it, but if not, oh well and in the meantime you can judiciously harvest greens from the tops of some of the plants to use as sort of extra-strength chives.

(e.t.a. - I'm with Steve. If growing garlic among other things imparted any noticeable taste, heck, people would do it on *purpose* Last year's garlic had lettuce close around the edges and some spots in the middle and I noticed exactly zero effect on the lettuce.)

Good luck,

Pat, fearing that much of my garlic may be rotting in the ground right now because it has been such a freakishly wet fall/winter and the veg garden has some as-yet-unresolved drainage issues, sigh

 

[Augustmomx2]

I "think" you can plant garlic now and just divide it or leave it at the end of the growing season. How's that for an expert? I haven't grown garlic for a few years and never planted anytime other than the fall.

Shallots I know - 'cept I don't know if I could get away with planting them the same time as the garlic. (See note re: "expert" above ) I was trying to remember how long I've grown shallots each and every growing season - really like the little things . It must be about 20 years.

I've always lifted all the shallot bulbs as the growing season begins to cool during late summer. These are stored in an unheated garage thru the winter. Since it freezes in there - I assume that the shallots would be okay outdoors thru a zone 5 winter . . . no promises, there.

Oh, and these things imparting their flavor to the veggies growing around them - can hardly believe that.

Shallots planted in the spring and garlic planted in the fall - that's how I've done it. Never a hitch. The reverse may also work somewhat but . . . I'm no expert!

Steve

Thanks for the info! I saw some shallot & garlic bulbs @ TSC the other day. I'll have to swing in and begin my planting w/the shallots

 

[Augustmomx2]

Dunno bout shallots.

Garlic you are better off planting in the fall but if you have garden space then it won't hurt to pop a bulb's worth of cloves into the ground as soon as the ground is workable (you could 'push' the ground a bit by covering it with clear plastic for a few weeks first, if you want). You may or may not get decent cloves out of it, but if not, oh well and in the meantime you can judiciously harvest greens from the tops of some of the plants to use as sort of extra-strength chives.

(e.t.a. - I'm with Steve. If growing garlic among other things imparted any noticeable taste, heck, people would do it on *purpose* Last year's garlic had lettuce close around the edges and some spots in the middle and I noticed exactly zero effect on the lettuce.)

Good luck,

Pat, fearing that much of my garlic may be rotting in the ground right now because it has been such a freakishly wet fall/winter and the veg garden has some as-yet-unresolved drainage issues, sigh

Thanks for all the info I may just do that and see what happens...like you said "oh well" if it doesn't work. Good to know about the garlic, yeah I heard that in passing last year and didn't know if it was true about the taste.

Sorry your garlic may be rotting, it HAS been an odd Winter for us as well

 

[Ellie]

I say go for it. I planted mine in January and they are looking good, but if you plant them now, you may just do well. Hey, you could at least plant a few cloves to see how they do.

 

[dbjay417]

I say go for it. I planted mine in January and they are looking good, but if you plant them now, you may just do well. Hey, you could at least plant a few cloves to see how they do.

thats what i'm doing despite the lack of cold season.

 

[meriruka1]

This might sound crazy, but two months ago I had some organic garlic that started to sprout. Since I had a newer bulb, I peeled the sprouted bulb and stuck the cloves in some potting soil and put them on our enclosed porch. They are now a foot tall and bigger than any garlic I've ever gotten from my garden by direct planting. I'm going to transplant them outside next weekend. If I get nice cloves, then I can stop worrying about overwintering in fall or too short a season in spring........

 

[me&thegals]

I once accidentally planted garlic bulbs in spring. They got a bunch of tiny bulbs and lots of shoots for each bulb planted. I call it green garlic now, like green onions, only garlic. I ALWAYS have green garlic. In fact, my green garlic is the first thing up each spring in March. I dig the whole clump except one tiny bulb and let it do the same thing all over again. The rest of the clump gets washed thoroughly and chopped into stir-fries, chopped raw into salads or sauteed with asparagus. Yum!

For real garlic bulbs, plant them in fall, mulch like crazy and dig them in summer--July here in zone 4.

 

[Augustmomx2]

I once accidentally planted garlic bulbs in spring. They got a bunch of tiny bulbs and lots of shoots for each bulb planted. I call it green garlic now, like green onions, only garlic. I ALWAYS have green garlic. In fact, my green garlic is the first thing up each spring in March. I dig the whole clump except one tiny bulb and let it do the same thing all over again. The rest of the clump gets washed thoroughly and chopped into stir-fries, chopped raw into salads or sauteed with asparagus. Yum!

For real garlic bulbs, plant them in fall, mulch like crazy and dig them in summer--July here in zone 4.

Mmmm...green garlic sounds delish! Now I'm going to have to try that as well... thanks for the tip