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Garlic Harvest Timing

yolos - 8a Ga. Brooks

8 years ago

This is my third year trying to grow decent size garlic bulbs. I finally succeeded in growing a garlic bulb that is worth curing. Following is a picture of one garlic plant I just harvested and a close up of the garlic bulb. The plant is approx. 3.5 inches tall, 3 leaves turning brown, approx. total 10 leaves, size of garlic bulb is 3.5 inches across. The bulbs were planted last October. The variety is Chets Italian.

My question relates to the timing of harvest. I still have about 25 more garlic plants to harvest so I want to make sure I am not harvesting too soon. I pulled this one garlic to test the maturity of the bulb. When you purchase a garlic bulb at the store, normally you can see the individual cloves bulging around the bulb. So far, this garlic bulb does not have individual cloves bulging. Is this because I harvested too early, or because it needs to cure before the cloves are prominent, or because of the variety of garlic.

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Comments (5)

LoneJack Zn 6a, KC
8 years ago
I think you mean the plant is 3.5 feet tall. Very nice looking large bulb! I think after curing for a few weeks the clove divisions should be more noticeable as the bulb wrappers shrink. Based on the number of green leaves remaining ( I think I see 6) I think you jumped the gun on harvest by 1-2 weeks. Six green leaves means you have 6 bulb wrappers remaining around the bulb which is why it is difficult to see the clove divisions. I would wait to harvest your remaining plants until there are about 4 or 5 green leaves left.
bcomplx
8 years ago
Agree with LoneJack, but then it's good to have sample heads harvested at different stages, so you can see how each of them cures out. Every variety is a little different. That baby is holding some big cloves!

But on the topic of head size...about one third of my garlic are large varieties, the rest medium to small. It probably has to do with the clove/wrapper ratio, but the little ones keep better than the big ones.
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Well not exactly in your neck fo the woods, but pretty close. I'm near Erie, PA. Like any garden item, some mature earlier/later than others. For me, it has usually been sometime in late June when I have noticeable leaf die back. Harvest has usally occured for me over the first 2 weeks or so of July. Again, sometimes a bit earlier, sometimes later. Using the leaves as a guide is excellent. As far as when to cut off watering, I usually try to guess when I am a week away from lifting the bulbs, and stop then. I also keep an eye on the weather forecast to try and get them up before a rain. My experience has shown a week early is better than a week late.
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Jude, I just till the plot well and stick the cloves into the ground however far they go in. I just push them in with my index finger, so maybe an inch. I think none of them were probably the same, LOL. I planted mine the end of October, right around Halloween, September is way too early here. So, I plant in late October or early November and harvest in July. Other than that I don't do anything else except keep the weeds down and water it regularly if we don't get rain (like this year). My garden gets a good dose of cow manure every year, but other than that I don't fertilize it either. The red garlic is about the diameter of a quarter, I was disappointed. The "Music", though, grew like gangbusters, I'll definitely keep some and plant it this fall. Oh, and don't forget to trim the scapes, or you'll get small bulbs... Annie
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yolos - 8a Ga. Brooks
Original Author
8 years ago
Well, I finally pulled all of my garlic. We had about 7 inches of rain over the past week and I was afraid what that would do to the Garlic so I decided to harvest now rather than take a chance on the really damp soil ruining my harvest.
ilodato
8 years ago
Wow nice looking garlic! I can't wait to harvest mine!
OldDutch (Zone 4 MN)
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
Really nice bulbs, and I say the cloves are obvious as well. Just don't be too quick to trim these babies back except for the ones you cook with of course. Be sure to let the tops and the roots dry out completely before you trim them back for storage. You can harvest garlic this early, but you have to make sure the cure completes. Or you make sure the leaves and stems are pretty close to completely dry before you braid them.

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