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

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19 Jan 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
This site is a self help site. It is for people to look up when how and why to plant vegetables in the their part of the world and their climate zone. Go to the home page and work it out. Go to vegetables - select the crop - select climate zone and read. It is all there.
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07 Jan 18, Carolyn (Australia - temperate climate)
Hi, I have 4 Pearl Garlic Plants that all have a head of seeds on them. The seeds are still white. do I wait for them to go black before I collect the seeds. And when I do - how do I go grow from seeds. when do I plant the seeds in the ground? I also have a bag of pearl garlic dried cloves from the Barossa (I am in Melb) - when can I plant the dried cloves. Would it still be in March/April? Any help would be appreciated :-)
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09 Jan 18, Mike (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I would suggest you research on the internet - how to grow garlic from seed. A lot easier and quicker from the bulbs I think.
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18 Jan 18, DavidG (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I suggest saving 4-6 bulbs from each crop, divide the cloves and plant them. Simple and 100% strike rate
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22 Feb 18, Tony.E. (Australia - temperate climate)
If your plant that smells like garlic has a stem with a seed pod at the top then it is not a garlic, it has the name giant russian garlic or elephant garlic, but it is not a true garlic it is closer related to the leek family. True garlic does not grow seeds.
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17 Jul 18, Ray S (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
I’m afraid that’s not quite correct Tony. Garlic can and does set seed though only some varieties manage it. There is at least one breeding program, in Israel I believe, using true garlic seed to develop new varieties, among other things. It took them a while to track down varieties that do set seed but they managed. I have heard that the variety Duganski sets seed readily.
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23 Dec 17, Andrea Cousins (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Is there a suitable variety of garlic that I can successfully grow in Kununurra, (Ord River Region), Western Australia?
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28 Dec 17, Mike (Australia - tropical climate)
Go on the internet and see if there are any that are suitable for the tropics otherwise try any normal variety from a shop.
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11 Dec 17, Phillip green (Australia - temperate climate)
Where on central coast can I buy garlic bulbs to plant?
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04 Mar 18, Scott (Australia - temperate climate)
Try bunnings or any good nursery. DON'T use garlic from the supermarket as a lot tend to be imported from China and spread disease into the soil. Good luck and happy gardening!
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Showing 181 - 190 of 577 comments
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Hi, we have been growing garlic now for 5 years on a pretty small scale, about 1 acre. Have been to field days, read literature & spent too many hours looking on the net. This has to be one of the most frustrating things I have ever been involved with. Some say it is swamp plant & you can't over water, others say to let them dry out a few times as it encourages growth. Heaps of fertilizer, very little fertilizer, sandy soil is best, loam is best etc. etc. Like an earlier post let the bulb tell you, ha ha. But it is true. For our purple garlic plant in March April with mild fertilizer, we use blood & bone. We water as you would any other plant, use a moisture meter or stick you fingers in the soil to see how dry/wet it is. Occasionally top dress with b&b. Pull one out every few weeks & see what it says. One thing that is common to all advice is to not water for the last 3-4 weeks (noted when the leaves start to turn yellow & die off) as this will produce a very slimy skin not easy to work with & hard to stop rot. Again pull one up & have a look at what it's doing, it will let you know same as a citrus, potato or anything else. Just takes time to get to know it. Hope this adds to the confusion, I know I still am.

- John

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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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