Garlic and garlic scapes

Well.. fall is approaching quickly and a true sign is the ripening of the garlic. We have been picking garlic now for about 2 weeks. Having several varieties, they ripen at different times.

We started out by purchasing TOP quality garlic to plant. Planting time is (in Michigan anyway) mid October. If you can plant by the light of the moon its best. When you are ready to plant there are a few things I have been told work best. My garlic is awsome with large tasty cloves.

SO.. start out with a head of garlic. Keep it in tact until just before preparation for planting.

24 hrs before planting, seperate the cloves. Leave in the skins. soak in water for 24 hrs you can adjust this to your schedule but you get the idea.

Then just before planting.. dip each clove in rubbing alcohol or a strong vodka. Garlic cloves can harbor tiny UNWANTED micro organisms in the skins. This quick DIP (30-60 seconds) will kill those little buggers that may just decide to FEED on your crop before harvest.

You should already have your spot prepared. I have grown in a raised bed, but if you mound your dirt you can do the same thing. The idea is that garlic does not like to be wet. Watered but doesnt like its feet in the water all the time. this will result in soft, moldy heads of garlic.

Add LOTS of natural organic compost to your dirt. We use llama/alpaca poo. They are HIGH in Nitrogen which garlic seems to enjoy.

PLANTING:

I use a large stick.. just slightly larger than the garlic clove. punch into the ground, place 1 garlic clove into ground, pointie end up and cover. Do this every 4-6" until you have used all your seed. water slightly, just damp but NOT wet. and lightly mulch. I used grass clippings and leaves we raked in the yard. In a a week you will see these little green plants POPPING thru. YEA you have garlic. HA if it was only that easy! NOW its time to wait.......and wait...... and wait...

Dont worry too much about them they are tuff little critters. Mine often are sticking 4-6" out of the november snow. No worries.. they will be JUST FINE..

so you go to the house and HIBERNATE for the next few months. Meanwhile... the garlic tops have dissapered beneath the snow and you more a less forget about them.

In the spring.. they will be one of the FIRST green plants to pop! they grow rapidly.

Keep the garlic weeded.. this is a MUST.. you can use mulch to keep the weeds down, or weed by hand. Personally I use lettuce. The two plant very well together, and I find it keeps the pests out of my lettuce. so inbetween you will see the lettuce. (see photo below)

a few weeks later you will see these little curlie things stickout out of the top of your garlic. What the HAY is that thing.. Well my friends ... that is a SCAPE! a wonderous little peice of garlic that is rarely used and is wasted. What a sin! This is a gormet delight.

Pinching these SCAPES off the plants is actually a GOOD thing for the plant. This is basicly the garlic FLOWER. if left on, the plant will send energy to this and not as much to your bulb. By removing it.. well the bulb gets bigger.

WAIT>.. don't throw it away! omg.. there are many things that can be done with these little treasures.

they are similar to a garlic flavored scallion. you can roast them, grind them, bake with them, saute them.. you name it. I do allot of dehydrating. I'm gonna try that NEXT year and see if I can preserve some of that goodness for cooking with Thu the winter.

in this post is a photo of roasted scapes, with potatoes, red pepper and onion. How kewl is THAT!

So Get out there... order your garlic, and prepare the soil for the best taste treat of the century.

For those of you that have livestock.. garlic is an excellent dewormer for ALL farm animals. It is impossible to overdose with, and instead of killing the worms with chemicals, it makes the living environment UNSATISFACTORY to live in, thus resulting in the death of the worms, but also difficulty to repopulate. If you can worm, put in dry lot or stall for a day or two then put on pasture its best. also rotation of the pastures is good if you have the option. We are going to all garlic to worm our sheep, llamas, alpacas and pigs. I have NOT tried on chickens or other poultry. if you have information on this please post for us.

If you have questions about growing garlic, purchasing garlic or use of it as a dewormer, please contact me.