Growing Garlic

Allium sativum : Amaryllidaceae / the onion family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
                P P    

(Best months for growing Garlic in USA - Zone 5a regions)

  • P = Plant cloves

September: Garlic can overwinter. Cover with a good layer of mulch . In areas where frost persists into March/ April, expect to harvest your garlic in June/July.

October: Garlic can overwinter. Cover with a good layer of mulch . In areas where frost persists into March/ April, expect to harvest your garlic in June/July.

  • Easy to grow. Plant cloves. Best planted at soil temperatures between 10°C and 35°C. (Show °F/in)
  • Space plants: 10 - 12 cm apart
  • Harvest in 17-25 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Beets, Carrots, Cucumbers, Dill, Tomatoes, Parsnips
  • Avoid growing close to: Asparagus, Beans, Brassicas, Peas, Potatoes

Your comments and tips

19 Sep 23, (USA - Zone 8a climate)
Best to plant in February/March
09 Sep 23, Mario Dalli (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Can a small complete bulb of garlic be replanted to grow larger in the next growing season.
22 Sep 23, Faith Celeste Archer (Canada - Zone 5a Temperate Warm Summer climate)
Certainly, BUT GENERALLY you break your bulb apart into it's constituent CLOVES and plant each clove separately. That is, each clove becomes a garlic plant.
14 Sep 23, Anonymous (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Yes
01 Sep 23, Patty Johnson (USA - Zone 10b climate)
What variety of garlic will grow best in Zones 10 A/B? Hardneck/softneck, etc. there are so many varieties to choose from. Thx
01 Sep 23, Isaac Sieberts (South Africa - Humid sub-tropical climate)
Which province in southafrica is the best to plant garlic
31 Aug 23, Ray wales (Australia - temperate climate)
How to store garlic after digging up.some of mine went soft.some started to sprout after a few months?.
28 Oct 23, Kelvan.......Margaret River wa (Australia - temperate climate)
I store my garlic in an onion bag and hang it up inside the shed.
06 Sep 23, Anonymous (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
A cool dry place.
12 Jul 23, Judy (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi I live just west of Toowoomba. I found a head of garlic in my fridge that is shooting all over the place! Is it ok to plant the cloves now?
Showing 21 - 30 of 899 comments

David, I also live in Zone 10A but in California (hot and dry, average 10 inches of rain per year), and please IGNORE the Aussie who thinks we do not check our Zone 10A recommendations. I have been container gardening here for a couple years and am still learning, with notable mistakes being not knowing correct planting/harvesting times (I now use this website over anything on a seed package), overcrowding, and overwatering. I have successfully grown garlic in Zone 10A, from store bought garlic cloves that were sprouting tiny green shoots, and they produced but the heads and cloves were only about half the size as the original store-bought, which might be caused by the climate, or more likely from be the mistakes I was making trying to grow new things like crowding, overwatering, and not knowing when to plant or harvest. Anyway, give growing garlic a try and my best advice is to avoid overwatering. I had a lot of cloves rot instead of growing and I think it was because of overwatering. After doing more research I'm trying to grow garlic again by planting some in NOV, and some in DEC, and really monitoring the watering. Even though my garlic was half sized, it still tastes great, so I would rather have half sized garlic I can grow myself than not growing garlic.

- Dave in California Zone 10A

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This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. Gardenate is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
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