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Garlic Sprouting
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Posted by trancegemini_WA Aust (My Page) on Thu, May 5, 05 at 1:53
| hi, I stuck some garlic bulbs in a tub about a week or so ago thinking the soil would be cool enough, the tub is even shaded by a shadecloth tent, but theyve sprouted tops already! is this normal? I put some in later last year and ended up with really small bulbs so I tried to get them in a bit earlier this year but I thought the tops werent supposed to come up until spring? will the bulbs still develop properly? |
Follow-Up Postings:
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| that's pretty normal behaviour when you plant them, mine started sprouting within days now all look like a lawn. they need tops and they need full sun to develop properly. one reason they may not have been real large last season was that you may have planted too late, generaly in march and into the first week or so of april. don't over water and not too dry. if they don't get as big this year plant earlier next year, but they, like other plants need the green growth to produce the edible bit. remember full sun especially on an eastern aspect mine are right out in the open no chance of shade and they always do well. i found mine actually shoot quicker if they spend a week or so in the fridge before planting some even sprout in the fridge that's even better. len mail len lens garden page |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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- Posted by pepino Werribee Vic (My Page) on
Thu, May 5, 05 at 18:38
| Garlic will sprout in the freezer too. It just happens to be getting to the right age and wants to reproduce. |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| thank you both :) great info len, just what I needed, I think I'll start them earlier next year and Ive taken the tent away now so they can sun themselves. |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| If you want bigger bulbs, the keys are nutrition and spacing. I put mine 15cm apart in rows 45cm apart. They get huge like this. Also side dressing when they get 15cm tall (in a couple of weeks) and again when the weather warms up in spring and keeping the weeds down. I can't stress enough that crowded garlic will be smaller. Cheers, Manuel. |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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- Posted by Mabb Melbourne, Aust (My Page) on
Sat, May 14, 05 at 19:21
| Mine have sprouted beautifully, all 160 of them and it only took a week for the little shoots to appear, but they were already sprouting when we planted them:-) What do people use to fertilise them - high nitrogen or phosphorus? Would potash help? |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| Interested in this... what do people fertilise their garlic with? |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| Mabb and any other interested in fertilising garlic, I have done some googling around and the allium forum on the Seppo gardenweb site is very useful. A few people there suggest blood meal and bone meal which I understand we buy as one product: blood and bone. Someone also suggested adding a potassium source so I will supplement my BnB with sulphate of potash. I was interested to see garlic described as a heavy feeder. I have never treated it as such and maybe this advice will help my yield this year. |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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Hi Trancegemini
Because (like many plants) the size and quality of the fruit (bulb ) depends on the size of the plant in the first place...ie...thebulb draws down the nutrients from the leaves and stalk to form the bulb...then the larger you grow the plant the better the size of the bulb
For optimum size the garlic corm needs to be planted about mid March up to mid April...anything later will grow well but not be as big and Garlic does need good soil but it will not develope as well in clay soil as it will in sandy loam (all being equal
Optimum spacing is about 18 inches eachway ( 45cm) because they put out lateral growth to 30cm from the stalk..closer plantings will be ok but I am talking optimums here The bulb should be about 3cm deep
If your soil is reasonably rich in organic matter then there is no need to fertilise until the tops are about 15cm tall and should be placed no further away from the plant than 30cm (particularly when young
continue fertilising with liquid manure until about 6 weeks before full maturity which is usually sometime between November and late december depending on which variety you have...you should not be watering or liquid manureing in the six weeks prior to maturity
The longest lasting garlic is best dug after the bulbs have fully segmented but before the outer skins begin to wither (you need to scrape around the bulb to check them)
Try not to let them form seedheads (as they occasionally do because this will prevent them (the bulbs) ganing full size
There are two basic types of garlic and the best keeping type are the varieties without the hard stem but on the other hand they tend to be milder in flavour
Good luck
Peter |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| hi Derby, thanks for the extra info. I can definitely see a big difference in the size of the stalks this year. The info I got last year sounds all wrong, no wonder my bulbs were so small! I think Ive got the spacing ok, theyre probably a bit close but not too bad. Ive also got lots of compost in there but it sounds like they could do with some fertilising. you live and learn, by next year it should have it down with all these hints! thanks for your help :) |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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Once you see the tops begin to die off then make sure you do not fertilise them...and don't bother watering them then either
Goodluck |
RE: Garlic Sprouting
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| I wait about a month after the tops have died before ripping em up. I was told also to plant them on the shortest day of the year, and harvest on the longest day. But they turned out too small, quite delicious though. |
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