Can You Plant Garlic In Spring? Garlic is mostly planted during the Fall, but this does not mean you have to wait till if you want your garlic up and alive before then. Even though you have what it takes to plant garlic at the right time, you may end up not doing so due to one issue or another.
But the question, can you plant garlic in the Spring? is not farfetched. You can plant garlic during Spring if you can provide the befitting environment for it to thrive. It may look easy from afar, but growing garlic without cold is challenging, and you need to be prepared before setting out. Just because you missed the planting period doesn’t mean you have to spend the whole year regretting it. Once you’ve made up your mind to plant your garlic anyway, the next step is to find how to do it.
That’s where we come in to give you the full information on how to plant garlic and answer your questions about planting garlic in the Spring. What are you waiting for?
There are three rules you should hold onto when growing garlic. Firstly, garlic needs cold treatment. Secondly, you should plant it as early as you can. And the last rule, provide enough moisture for the soil.
Types of Garlic
We can’t talk about the types of garlic that exist as there are hundreds of them. Though this may seem like too much, only two stock out, and these two are the ones we’re familiar with most.
Hardneck Garlic
This type of garlic can tolerate cold to the maximum extent. They are edible, and their scape is largely used in making pesto. This scape is produced as the first set of bulbs, and gardeners usually cut them off and leave the bulb to get bigger over time. Hardneck garlic produces large bulbs with only a row of cloves. Sometimes, it produces small cloves, but this isn’t common. This species of garlic is mostly grown in the northern part of the United States.
Softneck Garlic
This garlic can be found in the southern part of the country, and due to the weather there, it can tolerate heat more than hardneck garlic. It doesn’t produce any central scape and has multiple cloves in one bulb. The number of cloves depends on the size of the bulb; the larger, the better. One thing that most people love about this garlic is its long-lasting shelf life. It can stay up to nine months in storage before you notice it rotting.
Both hardneck and softneck garlic are enhanced with good flavors that make you want to include them in every dish you make.
Can I Plant Green Garlic In The Spring?
There are two reasons why people grow garlic. It may be because of the bulb they produce or for the crop green. Either way, if you find yourself in this situation, there are some things to know. Green garlic is just like scallions; it has a leafy stem and is in its early years. The stalk is slender and has a succulent bulb just coming of age. Most people love cooking with green garlic.
The whole plant is edible this way, and if you want, you can experiment with some of your favorite dishes. It’s a perfect addition to salads. If you find yourself with a tough or dry stalk, you can just make it into pesto. Better still, add it to your oil before cooking to give it that perfect garlic aroma.
How To Grow Large Garlic Bulb In Spring?
Garlic is mainly grown for its bulb. That’s why they do all it takes to ensure the bulb grows as large as possible. Garlic planted during the Fall has the right natural resources to grow large bulbs. But when compared to spring garlic, the situation is different. You will have to provide your own alternatives to ensure your plant gets as many nutrients as needed.
Even with all this being provided, it’s inevitable to have smaller bulbs at the end of the day. But notwithstanding, you get what you want; it’s a win-win situation.
How To Treat Garlic Planted In Spring?
If you’re planting hardneck garlic, you must prepare a cold system. The garlic plant needs it to grow and divide its bulb. On the other hand, there’s little or no cold weather during the spring period. This, however, makes it difficult for garlic to grow. It may even have to fight to stay alive. The plants must be exposed to cold temperatures for the entire process.
Another thing that can happen is the bulb forming into one round and not dividing. Garlic rounds are edible, but a large chunk of the mass is lost while forming the rounds. All this will make your harvest finish if care is not taken.
The best way to avoid these issues is to set up a cold system for your garlic. Let’s look at how to do this.
How To Vernalize Garlic?
Planting garlic in cold temperatures is called vernalization. To vernalize garlic, especially the hard neck species, you must first expose the seedlings to cold weather. The seeds will spend some time in the cold before you begin planting them. You can use two methods to do this.
Refrigerating
Place the garlic stock inside a fridge and let it simmer for up to eight weeks. First, you’ll need to prepare the gloves and wrap them in a plastic bag. Then poke little holes in the bag before adding the garlic seeds. This process will allow the garlic to breathe when inside the fridge. Alternatively, you can simply open the bag slightly and put it in the corner of the fridge. Every week, check the bag to ensure no mold is forming on the garlic. If you notice any sprouting poking out of it, get it out and plant it immediately.
As for softneck garlic, you can vernalize it for up to three weeks before planting. They’re not as strong as hardneck garlic and should not be left inside the fridge for longer.
Where To Buy Garlic For Spring Planting?
It can be tricky to find garlic seeds during the Spring. They’re readily available in the Fall, but this is as easy. Once the season ends, it becomes hard to get a place to buy garlic cloves for planting. One option is to order it online; although you might have to pay more than it normally costs, it’s worth it. Also, you can visit your local gardening store and buy the variety you want. You should consider buying as early as possible so you’ll have enough time to verbalize it.
When To Plant Garlic In The Spring?
One of the secrets of getting large bulbs of garlic in Spring is to start working your ground very early. Even though it’s not the right time to plant other crops, garlic is different. It needs time to process and develop. Have it clearly in the back of your mind that garlic requires a cold temperature, so before the weather becomes hotter, plant your garlic.
You can leave the cloves inside the fridge until they start to sprout before planting them. It’s faster that way.
A Step-by-step Guide To Planting Garlic In Spring
It’s easy to plant garlic; however, for someone starting out, it may seem like they’re doing everything wrong. This is why we compile a step-by-step guide on how to plant garlic.
1 – Find and prepare your site for planting. You should choose a place that gets enough sunlight during the day as this can hugely impact the garlic produce.
2 – Plant your garlic cloves. Place the seeds about an inch deep into the soil and keep them apart as far as three inches. This will allow them to ventilate and spread their roots extensively.
3 – Top the bedding. After planting, cover the plants with some leaves and leave them to rot.
4 – Water your plants. The next step is to continue watering your new plants to keep their moisture updated every day.
That’s it. As you can see, planting garlic is not rocket science, even during Spring. If you like what you get, you can repeat the process the next year to have all-year-round access to fresh garlic.
When To Harvest Spring-planted Garlic
Once you start seeing the leaves at the end of the garlic plants turning down, it’s time to harvest. Most times, the leaves dry up after being turned down for some time. Gently use a garden fork to lift the bulb and pick it up.
Final Thoughts on Can You Plant Garlic In Spring?
Planting garlic during Spring can be tempting, but with this detailed guide, you can’t go wrong. Get back to us on how you plant your garlic in Spring, and if you have more questions, leave them below. We’re happy to help.