GARLIC
Garlic likes rich, well-drained soil. It does best in areas with a pH between 6-7. Due to garlic’s intense flavor it is relatively pest-free.
Choosing & Planting
When choosing your garlic, consider what your will use your harvest for, and how long you’ll want to store your garlic. There are 2 main types of garlic varieties to be aware of:
Softneck Garlic: Softnecks produce 6-18 cloves per head. They are generally easier to grow and excellent for cooking. Softnecks have a longer storage life than hardnecks.
Hardneck Garlic: Typically have 5-9 cloves per head. They have a broad range of excellent flavors. Hardnecks have a shorter storage life than softnecks.
It is best to plant in mid- to late fall to get a root system established before winter. Certified disease free garlic is typically available to purchase at our garden center in late September.
Plant cloves 4-6 inches apart and cover with 1-2 inches of soil. Plant Elephant garlic (though not true garlic, they are actually in the leek family) 6-8 inches deep and cover with 4-6 inches of soil.
GARLIC VIDEOS
Curious how to go about choosing a garlic variety to grow? Check out our YouTube video on Garlic for Gardens to learn about types and timing for the home garden.
Watch this short video to learn & see 4 easy steps to getting your garden planted!
ONION SETS
Onions grow the first year and flower the following year. Onions are available for purchase at three different stages: seed, sets or bunches.
Onions planted from seed (or seeded tray packs) are less likely to bolt and are better planted in spring.
Onion sets are small bulblets (they look like miniature onions found in the store), and tend not to get as large if planted in the spring; planting sets in the fall is best.
Bunches are bundles of pencil-sized onions. Both onion sets and bunches have already grown one season and are more likely to bolt. Only available in spring.
Planting
Onions need full sun and well-draining soil. Onions perform best in light soil with organic material. If soils are clay, then amend with high quality compost.
Plant transplants 4-6 inches apart (3 inches deep for onion sets, 1 inch deep for transplants). Onions can be planted as close as 3 inches apart with thinning. This is a great way to provide green onions for salads and soups throughout the season. Rows should be 15 inches apart.
SHALLOTS
Shallots are the tasty result of an onion-garlic hybrid.
Planting
Surface sow (do not cover completely with soil) shallot bulbs in late fall about 8 inches apart in well-dug, well-drained soil with lots of organic matter. Rows should be about 12 inches apart. Make sure that they’ll get lots of sun.
Due to their strong smell and flavor shallots will repel most garden pests. Give them a good vegetable food, they like fertilizers with high phosphorus.
Information Provided by Territorial Seed Company
REGISTER FOR OUR UPCOMING CLASS
All About Garlic & Onions – Hybrid Class
Date & Time: Wednesday, October 11th at 11am
Learn how to plant, harvest, and store garlic and onions.