Last year's garlic still in ground - leave or pull up?

[kathyd]

Hi

I was in the process of relocating last year, so planted garlic in my new garden but then left it to fend for itself for months.. It struggled, but after pulling up all the weeds and grass in the bed, I found lots of little plants which are still there - looking pretty healthy, but without any bulbs. If I leave them in, will they form bulbs later? Or do I cut my losses and pull them up now to make room for the next crop?

Photo attached, if it's any help.

Thx

[Matt94]

if you planted them at the end of last year they will be ready to harvest around the end of july/start of august

[kathyd]

Hi Matt - I planted them at Easter...

[Capsid]

It looks like they were planted in late spring or summer by the amount of leaf. If so they will just turn to seed this year and won't swell up much. I always plant the bulbs in November and harvest in July/August.

[kathyd]

Hi Capsid - they don't seem to sell them in the shops in November in Brittany, I did look - they're just out now, along with the onions and shallots.

If they're not going to swell up now, I'll pull them up and eat them in soups and give them to the chickens . Hopefully this year's will do better since I'm here to look after them.

[zazen999]

They look like they usually look this time of year, I'd leave them in if you have the space to just plant round them - or take them out and use them green - garlic isn't like onions, if they flower you can still use the cloves as the flower stem just grows up the middle.

[kathyd]

Hi Zazen - well that's interesting, thanks - maybe I'll try leaving most of them in and see what happens to them . I'd ear-marked that bed for overflow strawberry plants and herbs, so I guess they'll all share quite happily . I could end up with ever such a lot of garlic at this rate!

[zazen999]

If all else fails, they have a lovely flower and mix well with strawbs. I collect up all the old garlics that didn't bulb up, and plant them in Mr Z's borders - they make a lovely display.

[Capsid]

Hi Capsid - they don't seem to sell them in the shops in November in Brittany, I did look - they're just out now, along with the onions and shallots.

If they're not going to swell up now, I'll pull them up and eat them in soups and give them to the chickens . Hopefully this year's will do better since I'm here to look after them.

I don't buy garlic but use 3-4 bulbs I have stored from the previous year which give around 30 cloves and usually provide more than enough for an annual supply for my family.

As zazen says, you can leave them in and see what happens.

[Jeanied]

I'd leave them in - when I left mine in, some of them turned into a large single bulb instead of a split head of cloves. I discovered on one of the cooking programmes that these are quite prized to cook with!

[kathyd]

Garlic flowers! Now there's a novelty I hadn't considered . Luckily all things growing in the garden are mine, all MINE, my precious, so I can stick what I want where I want. In a manner of speaking. OH wouldn't know one end of a plant from another . I only have half a flower border at the moment, veggies take priority, but I don't have much to put in it yet - so garlic could be just the thing!

Mark - I've always read you're supposed to buy fresh garlic like you're supposed to buy fresh potatoes, to avoid disease... and I've always wondered why my own stuff would be more likely to result in diseased crops than the 'certified' ones if they came from clean stock... but maybe I'll give it a go and see - it does seem daft to produce your own crops but still have to buy in new parents every year... what's the risk with garlic? I assume it doesn't get blight like potatoes?

[kathyd]

I'd leave them in - when I left mine in, some of them turned into a large single bulb instead of a split head of cloves. I discovered on one of the cooking programmes that these are quite prized to cook with!

I didn't know they could do that! I wonder why someone hasn't bred a strain which does it every time, if they're so prized... Do they taste different? Or does it just make chopping quicker and easier than with lots of littlies?

[Jeanied]

My big single clove ones were pink skinned and very pretty, maybe milder, and dead easy to peel and use!

[Capsid]

Mark - I've always read you're supposed to buy fresh garlic like you're supposed to buy fresh potatoes, to avoid disease... and I've always wondered why my own stuff would be more likely to result in diseased crops than the 'certified' ones if they came from clean stock... but maybe I'll give it a go and see - it does seem daft to produce your own crops but still have to buy in new parents every year... what's the risk with garlic? I assume it doesn't get blight like potatoes?

The main disease of onions and garlic is white rot. That remains in the soil not the plant, so unlike seed potatoes which are certified disease free, garlic is ok to use from your existing stock. I originally bought Solent Wight variety from the Isle of Wight garlic farm and have been using my own cloves ever since.

[kathyd]

Hi Mark - that's brill, thanks . I've bought a couple of different varieties to try this year, so if either of them performs really well I'll keep a few back for next year, and plant them late autumn!