I plant them about an inch under the top of the soil. And haven't even planted mine yet and the temps are to go as low as high 20's in a few days. (not normal)...

There are garlic growers in my neck of the woods. I tried planting some in a huge flower pot on my balcony last fall, but with no success. They rotted.

I hope you have much better success FOAS.
They need to be planted 4-5" deep, well before a serious frost. October is the normal time, but you should still be safe, given the warm fall we've had.

The soil should be loose, and rich with compost.
Leave lots of space between each clove as well, about 12".
Cover with lots of soil, and when the soil freezes, cover twith mulch to protect it against freezing and thawing, which makes the cloves rot.

Maybe that was my problem. I may have covered it with leaves and newspapers too soon. I should try it again.

I went to a garlic festival last fall, and everyone said how easy it is go grow. I have no idea why our locally-grown is so expensive, and I hate buying Chinese garlic.

It's too warm if you are in the 50's. Prepare the ground and the rows (if planting in the ground). Then drop the cloves in when you know you will be getting a hard frost.

Garlic is pretty easy to grow (I've found it's figuring out when to harvest that's the tricky part).

Plant the cloves about 2-3" deep (I just stick my forefinger down in the dirt to make a hole - my finger's about 3" long) and about 4" apart. Break apart the head into cloves just before you plant them.

What you want is the garlic to make roots before the ground freezes, but no top growth (a little green shoot here and there won't matter - they know how to deal with it).

I started growing garlic two years ago and the flavor of home-grown is fabulous. Plus you can save some heads and plant them again the year after!

Have fun and good luck!

All this talk about garlic makes me want to try again.
I HAVE heard that stuff from China may not be able to root/reproduce. Hope that's not true, it's all I have nowadays.

With the weather so warm, I still have time to prepare my pot and plant some when it turns cool again. Jeesh it's supposed to be 14 degrees C Mon and Tues. Nuts.

FOAS, plant it! I haven't planted any the last couple of years, but I usually put in it in the ground the end of October here, it'll send up some green shoots sometimes, but that's OK.

It'll be ready about next July. Well, I have been told that supermarket garlic doesn't grow well, but I haven't tried it, so go for it!

Annie

China is the largest producer of garlic, because they also use a lot of garlic scapes.

Garlic scape is a delicacy in Chinese cooking.

dcarch

I'd plant it now too, but I'd plant it in the ground. Planting in a pot will give an awful lot of freeze and thaw unless you pile hay/straw or something to insulate the pot. If you have any flower beds you could just shove them in there between plants.