The geese are migrating and the weather in Siskiyou County has been spectacular this month. We’ve had it all - sun, rain and snow! On one of our recent dry, overcast days we planted garlic. I’ve had a number of people ask me how to plant garlic, so here’s how it works.
November is generally a great month to plant. Garlic likes to develop roots in the fall. It’s basically like planting tulips or any other bulb.
Dig a trough in your rich, loamy garden soil. I plant pretty deep - about 6 inches. This seems to work really well for me, but I’ve heard of folks planting shallower.
Break your bulbs apart into individual cloves (called “cracking”). Plant the largest cloves to get the largest bulbs next summer. The pointy end is planted up and the rough end is planted down - again it’s just like planting a tulip.
Carefully press each clove into the trough so they stand at attention. I imagine a nice, fist sized bulb growing around each clove and plant them about that distance apart (3 inches or so). It’s not a big deal that they grow close together because they are harvested all at one time.
Gently fill the trough so that you don’t disturb the cloves too much. You can mulch the bed if you want or you can call it good with out mulch. Your garlic will peep out of the ground in the spring, if not sooner, and will grow throughout the summer. This was the batch we harvested in July.
So, get out in that yard before the snow flies! It’s just around the corner! If you don’t have a yard to play in then contact the Siskiyou Arboretum for information about how you can volunteer at Greenhorn Park, the Aboretum or the Yreka Community Garden. Call Tiffany Paine 842-3808.
Garlic and Community Service are good for you!
