The Garlic is Taking Off-- It Must Almost Be Spring!

[Jane23]

We had such warm, dry weather last fall so I was late planting my garlic, not getting it in the ground until November 21st. For the first time I ordered a couple of early cultivars, Thai Purple and Shandong. They suggest that the early garlics aren't necessarily as tasty as the later ones, however being able to harvest fresh garlic earlier is supposed to compensate for this. I am surprised to see how much top growth they have put on in just a few weeks compared to the main season garlic. If you look very closely a few shoots of 'Japanese' and 'Silverwhite' appear in the background-- but they are barely breaking through the soil. The early cultivars are about 5-6" tall already. View attachment 54496

My garlic is going nuts. I am already looking to order it for next year. I have also been getting emails from various vendors. Who has the best hardneck garlic for the price? I planted regular garlic this year and got lucky with a mild winter. I am guessing I won't get lucky twice.

 

[Crealcritter]

My wife cut scapes yesterday evening and made scape butter last night.

Jesus is Lord and Christ 🙏❤️🇺🇸

 

[Zeedman]

Last fall I planted a couple of Turban hardneck garlic varieties for the first time, and when I checked yesterday they are each beginning to scape. There is Shandong which originates in China, and Thai Purple which they indicate was sourced from a market in Bangkok. Hood River Garlic company says that the Turbans are a sub-species of artichoke garlic, and they find that they do well in the Pacific Northwest. My goal in growing Turbans was to create a longer harvest window, so as not to be overwhelmed by all of the garlic maturing at the same time. Next up will likely be Japanese, which is an Asiatic garlic.

I would have to respectfully disagree that Turban garlics are a sub-species of Artichoke types. When I grew them, they not only formed scapes, they produced large pea-sized bulbils. Artichoke varieties are "soft neck" types, and in my experience, only form cloves within the stem... and that only when under stress.

I really liked Turbans, and hoped to keep a couple in my permanent collection; but they are not winter-hardy enough to reliably survive my Wisconsin winters. Probably a good fit for the Maritime climate of the Pacific Northwest though.

 

[flowerbug]

... Treat garlic as if it was edible tulips.

tulips are edible (the flower petals and the bulb) for most people. mild onion taste according to my brother. you should not eat the stems or leaves or base part of the flower. personally, it is not something i've tried (i love onions and not as much the milder onions, but i do have to admit that some mild green onions are delicious).