Many people want to grow garlic themselves. But they don’t know how to plant. This blog will tell you everything you need to know.
I. The Complete Guide To Growing Garlic
What kind of garlic should you choose for planting?
Only large and healthy garlic seeds will thrive. When growing garlic, high-quality garlic seeds are the key to success. They’re the best guarantee of a bumper crop and great-tasting garlic. So, when planting garlic, choose the best seeds you can find. Look for large, fat, uniform cloves with hard flesh and bright skin. Treat garlic seeds before sowing. Do not use small, thin, broken, or garlic with lesions, spots, or insect infestation. When sowing garlic in the spring, it’s good to choose purple-skinned or perennial garlic. Perennial garlic is weak in winter and has a short growing period. Once you’ve selected your garlic, it’s essential to carefully separate the cloves from the bulb so you don’t damage them. Each garlic clove will grow into a new bulb, so it’s a great idea to be gentle with them!
When to grow garlic?
October is the best month for planting garlic, but you can plant it anytime. In the northern region, plant garlic in late September or October. In the southern region, plant in October, but you can also wait until November, December, or even January.
What temperature is suitable for growing garlic?
Garlic doesn’t need high temperatures to germinate and grow. It just needs a mild climate to grow well. It’s very hardy, especially in the seedling stage, and can withstand temperatures as low as -7 and briefly -10 degrees Celsius. Germination starts at 3 to 5 degrees Celsius. The best temperature for garlic seeds to germinate and grow is 12~16℃. For buds, shoots, and expansion, it’s 15~20℃, 17~22℃, and 20~25℃, respectively.
Where to plant garlic?
You can grow garlic indoors in pots, wooden boxes, or containers large enough for roots. Ensure the container is at least 30cm wide so the garlic is spaced. The bottom of the container should also have drainage holes. You can plant it outdoors, but whether indoors or outdoors, you must use loose, well-drained soil with lots of sunlight.
How far apart do you plant garlic?
When planting garlic, it is recommended that the distance between each row of garlic be maintained at 10-13 centimeters. 10-13 cm is the best distance between each plant
How deep is it to plant garlic?
The optimal sowing depth for garlic is typically between 5 and 6 centimeters. Before sowing, create a shallow trench measuring 6 to 8 centimeters deep. Plant the garlic seeds into the trench, orienting the backs of the cloves upwards. Finally, cover the seedlings with soil. After planting the garlic, cover with another 1 to 2 centimeters of soil to ensure uniform sowing density and depth.
How long does it take for garlic to grow?
The growing period of garlic is highly variable and affected by the different sowing times. The growth period of spring-sown garlic is short, 90 to 100 days, while the growth period of autumn-sown garlic is as long as 220 to 240 days.
II. Garlic Planting Care
1. Water the garlic
Garlic has high water requirements. Because its root system is not very developed, we must pay more attention to the water management of garlic in each period.
During the germination period, the soil must maintain sufficient moisture. Only with adequate moisture can garlic avoid the problem of lack of seedlings.
Control water during the seedling stage. Don’t allow too much drought. This will ensure deep-root penetration.
During garlic’s flower bud and scale bud stages, garlic needs lots of water to grow fast. So, we need to keep enough water to meet garlic’s needs.
Garlic sprouts require more water
during the bolting stage when they begin to grow and, therefore, require more water.
2. Weeding
After the garlic seedlings grow, weeding must be carried out regularly to prevent weeds from absorbing nutrients.
We can control weeds with cultural techniques. These techniques inhibit weed growth and development without herbicides. These techniques can also be used to cover weeds with straw or black mulch and other agricultural measures. It would help if you manually weed plots with small plant spacing. When weeding, pull the weeds gently to avoid hurting the garlic seedlings.
If you have a large planting area, you can also use herbicides and different pesticides. Switch between them to keep them working, which will prevent weeds from developing resistance.
III. Garlic Harvesting And Storage
Harvesting
Harvesting garlic early enough is beneficial to its preservation. The right time to harvest is 15 to 20 days after the garlic sprouts are picked when the leaves are withered, and the pseudostems are soft.
Storing
Store fresh garlic at -5°C to -7°C. The best range is -1°C to -2°C. Other temperatures can cause garlic to rot.
The optimal relative humidity range is 50% to 60%. Relative humidity levels above 80% are not recommended.
The gas composition should be as follows: O2 should be at least 2%, with a preferred range of 3.5% to 5.5%; CO2 should not exceed 16%, with a controlled range of 12% to 16%.
For optimal storage, select undamaged garlic. Adequately stored garlic will last longer. To dry the bulbs, place them in the sun for 2 to 4 days or in a room with a temperature of 30°C to 40°C and humidity of 50% to 60%. Braid 30 to 60 heads of garlic together and hang them to store under the eaves or in other well-ventilated places. When storing garlic, it is essential to keep it away from moisture and rain.
IV. Where To Buy Garlic Online
FENDUNI is the leading Chinese garlic exporter. We specialize in selling the finest organic garlic bulbs. These are sourced exclusively from the freshest garlic produced in China. We oversee the wholesale value chain of bulk garlic. We do so with the utmost care to ensure the traceability and safety of our garlic. Our planting production base is in Jinxiang County. We have 16 points of purchase and 18 cold storage facilities there. They have a total capacity of over 13,000 metric tons. We select our fresh garlic from China with care. We ensure strict adherence to quality standards and a robust management system. It delivers the best wholesale service to our customers. If you want to buy garlic online, choose FENDUNI.