Growing Garlic

Allium sativum : Amaryllidaceae / the onion family

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

(Best months for growing Garlic in Australia - sub-tropical regions)

  • P = Plant cloves
  • 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

02 Mar 20, Anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Look up the internet about garlic varieties for different climate zones.
12 Feb 20, janick whan (Australia - temperate climate)
whith is the best month to plant garlic .thank you
13 Feb 20, Cas (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Look it up. Hit , make sure it's your zone at the top of the page. Likely Apr/May/Jun
02 Feb 20, william kerr (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
what garlic is best to grow in the gympie region for a commercial crop? where would I get it?
17 Mar 20, Graham Bower (Australia - temperate climate)
For many years I stuck rigidly to old theory of "plant shortest day" and Harvest longest day. Always very successful, but recent years have experimented to early as mid April. Reasonable success with slightly earlier harvest. but quality not quite as good as later planting.... . In Berwick Vic.
03 Feb 20, anon (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Contact the agricultural department in your state.
17 Dec 19, Brian Gavaghan OAM (Australia - temperate climate)
With our diverse weather, what watering should we do?And Oblige Brian
18 Dec 19, Another gardener (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
It is a bit of trial and error. Have good draining soil. Little plants need little waterings more often, daily, big plants a lot more water less often, 2-3 times per week. General rule dig down into the soil 50-70mm to see how moist the soil is. You will quickly learn that say a crop of lettuce might need 60 sec of watering. Whereas some mature tomatoes plants need 2-3 minutes.
14 Nov 19, Graham Bower (Australia - temperate climate)
In Berwick Vic. Have grown garlic with great success for years but this year virtually all plants have segmented in the ground pre normal harvest time. Plants are still strong, green and upright although have grown slimmer leaves as they segment. I do not believe I have done anything differently this year. Any thoughts?.
18 Nov 19, (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Maybe the hotter weather.
Showing 91 - 100 of 577 comments

Just remember to only select the largest cloves and eat all the small ones for yourself. The cloves determine the size of the harvested garlic. If you select only the largest cloves then as the garlic grows and the protective outer cloves develop around the centrally planted seed, they will develop to a size that matches the original clove you plant. Small clove = small yield. Large cloves = much larger yield. Being selective about saving only the very best and largest seeds for many different types of plants is going to serve you well. I think my kids are always slightly disappointed that we always have to 'eat the mistakes' while the very best of what we grow is saved as seed for an even better harvest next year. I guess it is the same principle as animal husbandry.

- Christian

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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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