sounds like you planted in the spring? If so, I did the same thing this year and was told that you should plant in early fall let over winter sprout back in spring then when it dies back dig up. hopefully someone will confirm this because I haven't tried it yet but will this fall. I'm just using extra cloves from the store that sprout to get the hang of it first.

About "long-term storage" - I keep an eye on it once it is completely dry - after being in an airy - not too much sun - spot outside.

The thick necked ones don't seem to dry store too long. For these, I peel immediately add either peanut or olive oil - and grind in my blender. This combo is then poured into small-size freezer cube containers, frozen. The cubes are then packed in a freezer container (or oleo, etc. type) and frozen for immediate addition to any dish that I'm preparing for a quick saute or seasoning. Works great.

If the garlic has thin necks, it will last longer. These are sometimes braided (not very often - tho), or just tied together and hung on a convenient nail in my kitchen for immediate use - pulled from the bunch.

Other ways to use garlic - if it's beginning to show too much aging - is to grind it with your favorite salt, then dry - either in the oven (don't burn) or in a dehydrator - if you have one. When the mash dries solid - grind it in the blender until it will pass through a shaker - viola! garlic salt.

You could also just dry the garlic plain, dry and make powder also.

In my zone 10 garlic is planted in October - same as beets, carrots. They grow in cool weather, but need some warmth to "bulb-up" - I just harvested most of mine this past few weeks.

Just my 2 c's.

Bejay

No, I actually planted them in the fall and they grew a good bit I mulched them heavily and then over wintered as well. they never did die back though (mild winters here).

Woo hoo!
I'm loving this thread--trying to grow garlic was our first garden disaster
after moving here from NJ last year

I don't know how much of this pertains to your problems,
but here's what we learned:
* You can't grow the same varies of garlic down here
because it never gets cold enough to really stop the top growth
Here's one of the websites devoted to that subject:
http://www.gourmetgarlicgardens.com/growsouth.htm

* If you try to plant the varieties intended for the north too early, they never bulb
We enjoyed a lot of garlic greens this spring

* If you try to plant the varieties intended for the north at the right time in the fall,
the bulbs never get very big
However, you need to harvest these promptly rather than hoping that they'll get bigger
or else the bulbs will start to rot

Hope this helps your situation some--it was a lot of fun getting it off my chest

General Garlic culture. Start with good "seed" garlic, not the kind you buy in the grocery store. Most nurseries and garden centers will have appropriate Garlic stock for your area. Garlic is planted in the fall, (cooler wetter days) for harvest the following summer. You are not actually planting a seed, but rather a Clove, which is a subset of the Bulb. Each Bulb will break down into 6 - 12 cloves usually. Plant only the largest Cloves, save the smaller ones for cooking. Plant the cloves in a well prepared bed about 4" deep and about 4" on center. Garlic is a heavy feeder so be sure to provide adequate nutrients at the time of planting. In warmer climates you may see some growth early. This will not hurt anything.

How long Garlic takes to mature depends on your climate. It generally will mature before your hot dry season begins. Do not try to extend the growing season by watering. Once the plants have begun to turn yellow, they are done growing. After that, watering only causes them to rot.

When approximately 1/3 to 1/3 of the plant is yellowing is the time to dig. Brush off the dirt, but do not wash. Lay the entire plant, tops and all, in a shady, breezy location to cure. Once the skins on the bulb become papery and dry it is time to process. If you are growing softneck types, now is when you braid and hang. If growing hardneck types, cut the stem to about 6 inches and using rubber bands bundle into groups of 10. Hang in a warm dry place until completely cured. The stem will be dry and detach from the bulb easily.

With dry hands, rub off any remaining dirt, being careful not to rub of the skins so that the Cloves are exposed. Store in a cool dry place, not the refirgerator. Properly cured Garlic can be expected to last several months. If it starts to sprout, process as some of the others have indicated.

Can you leave Garlic in the ground too long? Yes, and then it becomes very fragile and difficult to dig. Err on the side of caution and dig when the plant is yellow, but not dry. Good luck!

Steve

You could also buy garlic from farmer's market in the summer after the local harvest and keep it in a cool dry place until the fall. Plant the largest cloves. I planted all of them from a garlic and the small cloves will grow small garlics even under the exact same condition. I pull mine out when 1/2 of the leaves are yellow.

I guess I should have included more pertinenant details. I did not plant grocery store cloves, I purchased from a local grower, seed garlic of various varieties. All of which grow in the south (this person has been growing these varieties for many many years). I planted as instructed in well amended garden soil and topped off with composted material/mulch.

I will have to check/confirm what specific varieties I planted. (soft vs hard neck)

Rjinga-
Perhaps it's something simple, like maybe you put the mulch on too thick?
That could keep the garlic from getting chilled enough to stop the top growth

Oops! I was projecting my disaster onto you
I don't think you've said that they're actually ready for harvest yet

Perhaps when the rest of the plants are ready for harvest, they'll be fine

rjinga -

Did you topdress and/or foliar feed the garlic in late /winter and this spring several times ?

This made a big difference for me in my bulb size, when I started feeding in the spring when the top growth starts ( but then stop at least 6 - 8 weeks before your harvest so that the plant puts the energy in to bulbing and not more leaves. )
I am not sure what middle GA has been like but I believe up by Atlanta they have had inconsistent rainfall for a while now. Garlic needs consistent moisture ( they do not like to get dry at all )
If you amended the soil and mulched the way the grower you got them from does than those are the 2 factors I would guess could be different.

Nam

My husband plants a lot of different varieties of garlic. He plants in Sept/Oct here in Michigan. He fertilizes with bone meal, blood meal and wood ash. He side dresses several times in the early spring. His garlic is really big. He harvests in July/August. When he harvests he hangs the bulbs to dry and then we keep them in our downstairs utility room during the winter where is cool and dry. I am curious as to what others fertilize with.

rjinga,
I think we are in the same zone. I am in North Fulton area.
I planted mine last fall too and just harvested the remainder yesterday. I had everything from grocery store cloves. They did just like their mother did no surprises there. I found out that hardnecks did much better. So from now on no more white softneck for me.

About curing and storage:
I let them air dry in the shade a bit then tie their tops together and hang them in a shaded shed.
As I have read here on the GW, the best storage temperature for onions and garlics
is 50F-60F with normal humidit. In cooler temperatures(like in frig) they will get ready
to sprout, thinking that winter is comming to end soon.

I have dug a hole in the floor of my shed and last year I kept my onions there
all winter without sprouting or spoileage. I had ver few garlics last year and storage was not an issue.
The ground temperature below frost line is constant, around 60F +/- a few degrees.

Last year while searching GW for when to pull my garlic, the most common answer I seemed to find was to pull when there are about 5 green leaves left. If you leave them in the ground until all the leaves are gone by, it's really easy to lose them and you'll have to dig for them rather than just yank them up.

Here is a link that might be useful: Tales of a Transplanted Gardener

I know I didn't start this post, but this was all info I needed. Thank you to everyone who posted so much good information. It seems I have done everything wrong when it comes to growing garlic. I'll just see what I get, and try planting again this fall.

lakemayor --

Cover crops turned under ( hopefully a month before planting )

Bonemeal, Compost + Okara when planting

Alfala + Cottenseed meals in Later winter

Compost, 'TEAS' + UCG in Spring

I am going to give them a good once over this weekend and see what I see and decide if I should pull them up. I did NOT foliar feed or topdress them, I didn't fertilize them at all in fact :(

I guess I'll plan to do that next time.

I want my garlic to cure and store really well, and for that you need to pull them early, when 30-40 percent of the tops are no longer green. They are fragile, need gentle handling until they are cured, or allowed to air dry in the shade for a couple of weeks. If you leave them too long the bulbs will open up (think bloomin onion) and separate, which is great for the garlic plant's survival, but there goes a bulb you can't enjoy working with in the kitchen.

Namfon, Thanks for answering my question about feeding/top dressing the garlic. I know that wasn't the original question to this thread but I was wondering what others did. Thanks

lakemayor, why the wood ash? Thanks for the info on Mi. growing garlic.

Makete, I have had good experience with the wood ash providing a source of potash - with the blood meal and bone meal then providing the nitrogen and phosphorus respectively.

Thank you lakemayor, and everyone else. This is my first year for growing garlic. I wouldnt be growing it in the first place if it hadnt been for you all here at GW. Have been givin a lot of very good advice from you all here and have change some of my gardining ways, all for the good so far LOL, because of the advice recieved here. Is this too sappy? Oh well, thanks anyway.