Garlic 'Growers Pick' (Autumn Planting)

What You'll Need

A garden fork or trowel • Well-rotted garden compost • Concentrated Slow-Release Onion, Garlic & Shallot Feed Granules • Horticultural fleece if birds are a problem • Horticultural grit if you have heavy soil

Prepare Your Soil

Choose an open, sunny position with fertile, free-draining soil. Garlic dislikes sitting in wet ground, particularly through winter. If your soil is heavy, work in plenty of organic matter and horticultural grit to improve the structure and drainage. Avoid planting in freshly manured ground.

Planting Your Garlic

Keep the bulbs whole until you're ready to plant, then separate them carefully into individual cloves, leaving the papery skins intact. Plant each clove with the flat base down and pointed end upwards, around 15cm apart and 2–2.5cm below the soil surface. Leave approximately 30cm between rows.

Protecting Young Shoots

Birds can sometimes pull up newly planted cloves or emerging shoots before they've rooted securely. If this becomes a problem, cover the crop with horticultural fleece or suitable netting until the plants are well established.

Watering & Feeding

Water during prolonged dry periods, particularly in spring as the bulbs begin to swell. Avoid waterlogging the soil and stop watering during the final few weeks before harvest to help the bulbs mature.

Watch for Scapes

If you receive a hardneck variety, it may produce a curling flower stem known as a scape. Remove it while young so the plant can concentrate its energy on developing the bulb. The tender scapes are edible too and have a fresh garlic flavour that's excellent in stir-fries, omelettes and pesto.

Keep It Weed Free

Garlic doesn't compete well with weeds, so keep the area around the plants clear. Weed carefully by hand or hoe lightly between the rows, taking care not to damage the developing bulbs.

Growing in Containers

Garlic grows well in large containers with good drainage. Choose a pot at least 30cm deep, space the cloves around 15cm apart and position it in full sun. Check container-grown plants regularly during dry weather as the compost can dry out more quickly.

Good Companions

Garlic takes up relatively little room above ground, so it fits easily into a productive vegetable plot alongside crops such as carrots, beetroot and leafy salads. Make sure neighbouring crops don't crowd it as the bulbs develop.

Making the Most of Your Bed

Quick-growing radishes and salad leaves can be grown nearby and harvested while your garlic is still developing. Leave enough space around the garlic for plenty of light and good airflow.

Crop Rotation

Garlic belongs to the onion family, so avoid planting it where onions, shallots, garlic or leeks have recently been grown. These crops can be affected by some of the same soil-borne pests and diseases.

Planning Ahead

Where practical, leave three to four years before growing onion-family crops in the same ground again. Once your garlic has been harvested, the cleared space can be used for later-sown salads and other quick-growing vegetables.

When to Harvest

Harvest time will depend on the variety selected for you, with some garlics maturing earlier than others. From late spring into summer, watch for the lower foliage beginning to yellow and die back – a good sign that the bulbs are approaching maturity.

Don't Leave It Too Long

Once the bulbs are mature, don't leave them in the ground unnecessarily. If left too long, the protective skins can begin to deteriorate and the cloves may start to separate.

How to Harvest

Choose a dry day and carefully loosen the soil beneath each bulb with a garden fork before lifting it. Avoid pulling hard on the stems or bruising the bulbs.

Drying Your Garlic

Leave freshly lifted bulbs to dry thoroughly somewhere warm, dry and well ventilated. Once the outer skins and foliage are completely dry, brush away loose soil and trim the roots.

Storing Your Harvest

Once properly cured, keep your garlic somewhere cool, dry and well ventilated. Storage life varies between varieties, with softneck garlic generally keeping for longer than hardneck types.

A Kitchen Staple

Whichever variety our growers choose, homegrown garlic is one of those crops you'll find plenty of uses for. Add it to sauces, soups, stews, casseroles, curries, marinades and roasted vegetables.

Roasting Garlic

Roasting mellows garlic's flavour and gives the cloves a softer, sweeter character. Roast until tender, then mash into sauces and soups, stir through vegetables or spread onto warm bread.

Use It Fresh

Freshly harvested garlic can be chopped, crushed or finely sliced into your favourite dishes. Flavour strength will vary depending on the variety selected, so taste as you cook and adjust the amount to suit.

Enjoy the Scapes Too

If your Growers Pick is a hardneck variety, you may also get edible scapes before the bulb harvest. Pick them while young and tender and use them in stir-fries, omelettes or homemade pesto.

Understanding Your Garlic Bulbs

Garlic is supplied as a whole bulb made up of individual cloves. Separate each bulb just before planting and plant the cloves individually. Each healthy clove can develop into a complete new bulb.

Bulb Size & Clove Numbers

You'll receive two bulbs of the same variety. Garlic is a natural product, so the number and size of cloves will vary depending on the variety selected and from bulb to bulb.

Hardneck Garlic

Hardneck garlic typically produces larger cloves arranged around a firm central stem and produces edible scapes before the bulbs mature. Several varieties in the Growers Pick range are hardnecks.

Softneck Garlic

Softneck garlic generally produces more cloves of varying sizes and has flexible foliage rather than a rigid central stem. It also tends to store for longer than hardneck garlic. Your Growers Pick may be a softneck variety.

Your Growers Pick Garlic

You'll receive two bulbs of one variety selected by our growers from the available autumn planting range. The exact variety cannot be specified and may vary according to availability, so appearance, flavour, clove size and harvest time will differ depending on which garlic you receive.

When Your Garlic Arrives

Keep the bulbs whole until you're ready to plant and separate the cloves immediately before planting, leaving their papery skins intact. If you can't plant straight away, keep the bulbs somewhere cool, shaded, dry and well ventilated until you're ready to get them into the ground.