Weekend Garden Tip – Harvesting Garlic

(Willamette Valley Zone – 8b)

Around this time of year your garlic should being going dormant. The tops will be mostly brown a few streaks of green.

To Harvest:

Stop watering for a few days or week and leave in the soil to cure.

Lever a trowel under the bulb and pop it out of the soil.

Brush off excess soil – but don’t wash.

Leave your garlic in a cool dry place for about a week to cure.

Remove the roots.

For softneck garlic you can braid the leaves and hang.

For hardneck garlic remove the leaves and store in a cool, dark, dry place.

Save some of your fattest cloves for planting in the fall. (September – November)

Enjoy!

Most garden vegetables are planted in the spring and harvested in the fall. It can take a little effort to remember to plant garlic fall for a summer harvest, but once you get into the swing of it you will be rewarded with a bountiful harvest of this fragrant bulb each summer and may never need to buy garlic again.