Growing great garlic...There is something immeasurably rewarding and addictive about growing garlic. Since we planted that first kilogram we were smitten by the garlic bug and I think Keith Stewart says it best; "For me, it is the plant itself that is most remarkable: its stately appearance in the field, its fascinating life cycle and growth habit, its hardiness, its ancient lineage, the way it comports itself in this world.'
Hard-neck garlic has larger cloves that radiate out from a hard central stem. They peel easily and their flavour is outstanding. Hard-neck garlic is more demanding to grow than soft-neck, yields less per acre and has a shorter shelf life. Amongst real garlic lovers, it is the only thing to eat.
Soft-neck garlics produce no hard central stalk and scape, this variety is most often found in supermarkets due to its longer shelf life. These bulbs typically have more cloves than hard-necks, with some of them being small central inner cloves. Soft-neck garlic can be braided whereas hard-necks cannot.
CLIMATE
Garlic needs a cold Winter, a moist Spring and a reasonable dry November and December. The cold triggers germination and develops the flavour. Beds should be in full sun and ammended with well aged compost.
SOIL
Like all Alliums, garlic is a fairly heavy feeder that appreciates high levels of fertility. Planting beds should be well ammended with compost or other well-rotted manure and thoroughly worked in before planting. Garlic will grow well in most soils but dislikes 'wet feet'. If your soil drainage is poor it is advisable to grow garlic in raised beds. We plant late in March and harvest towards the end of November.
Seperate the garlic bulbs into cloves (not more than 24 hrs before planting). Each clove planted will produce a new bulb.
Dig a furrow 3cm deep and plant each clove at least 15cm apart with a spacing of at least 25cm between the rows. Cloves must be planted with the pointy end facing upwards as this is where the new growth will emerge from.
We mulch heavily with lucerne / alfalfa to retain soil temp, moisture and prevent weeds. Garlic detests weeds and if your patch is not kept weed free your yield will be reduced by at least 30%.
If growing hardneck garlic, snap off the scapes that appear in late Spring. prepare them as you would asparagus...very similar just far better. The scapes make a wonderful Pesto.
HARVESTING
DO NOT water 2 - 3 weeks prior to harvest. Garlic is susceptible to mould and fungus, which will shorten its shelf life or destroy the bulb altogether.
Garlic should be dug while there are still at least 4 green leaves on the plants, since these leaves are attached to the papery wrappers on the bulbs, which quicky deteriorate in the soil once the leaves die.
Wrapperless bulbs do not keep well, those with 4 - 5 wrappers can be cleaned properly and stored optimally.
Garlic left in the ground too long tends to split, allowing soil, moisture and potentially disease to get in.
Pull the garlic out with a fork taking care not to damage the bulb.
Bunch the garlic into groups of 10 - 15 and tie loosely together with twine. Hang to cure in a well ventilated room or shed. curing takes around 10 days - 4 weeks.
the purpose of curing is two-fold - to increase shelf life and most importantly to develop the flavour of the garlic.
We test our garlic by checking the stems. If it snaps off easily then its done.
After 2 weeks we braid some of our garlic, it is then further cured by 2 weeks.
Once cured clip off the roots and tops at about 3cm above the head.
Stored in a well ventilated cool room your garlic should last at least 8 months.
GARLIC SCAPE PESTO
1/4 cup pine nuts / cashews
3/4 cup coarsely chopped garlic scapes *
Juice and zest of 1/2 lemon
1/2 teaspoon salt
A few generous grinds of black pepper
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
*Or use half scapes and half basil
In a small, pan set over very low heat, lightly toast the pine nuts, stirring or tossing occasionally until just beginning to brown, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool for a few minutes.
Combine the scapes, pine nuts, lemon juice and zest, salt, and pepper in the bowl of a food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Pulse about 20 times, until fairly well combined. Pour in the olive oil slowly through the feed tube while the motor is running. When the oil is incorporated, transfer the pesto to a bowl and stir in the grated cheese. Bon Appetite!