How to Grow Garlic from Seeds: Guide and Tips

Types of garlic and their features

It's no secret that there are two types of garlic: spring, which needs to be planted in spring, and winter, which is planted for the winter.

In addition to the planting time, the structure of the bulb is also different. Spring varieties contain up to 20 cloves, which are arranged in circles around the stem from the smallest in the center. And winter crops, on the contrary, contain up to 9 cloves, which are located close to the stem.

They also differ in taste, although modern breeding produces a variety of tastes in both varieties.

Spring garlic is better stored (sometimes it is possible to store the harvest for a whole year), while winter garlic is stored for a maximum of 5 months.

Winter garlic differs from spring garlic by the presence of arrows, which must be collected for further reproduction. For large-scale plantings, especially industrial ones, when the size of the plot is calculated in hectares (ha), it is better to use bulbs of winter garlic.

How to plant

Cultivation with bulbs takes two years: in the first year, a single-tooth bulb grows from it, and in the second - a full-fledged garlic head with 5-9 cloves. You can also use one-toothed teeth, but it is preferable to leave them for reproduction.

Planting bulbs or, as they are also called, "sevok" is possible in two ways. In the first, they are sown for the winter. To do this, furrows with a depth of 5-6 centimeters are marked on a site previously disinfected and fertilized with phosphorus, potassium and nitrogen. Clean river sand is laid at the bottom of the furrow, and seedlings are laid into it at a depth of 3 centimeters. The distance between them should not exceed 6 centimeters. There should be at least 10 centimeters of free space between the rows. Moisten the soil and close the furrows. Thoroughly mulch the top with plant debris, sawdust or peat, creating a pillow 2-3 centimeters high.

The second safer method is planting in the spring. For the winter, the bulbs should be stored in a dry, dark place at temperatures up to +20 ° C. Around February, they are transferred to a cool place where the temperature does not rise above + 4 ° C in order to activate vegetative processes. A week before planting, the seedlings need to be dried, ventilated and sprayed with a pink solution of potassium permanganate. When the land on the site warms up to at least +7 ° C, you need to plant seedlings. Form furrows in the area so that you can lay the seedlings to a depth of 3-4 centimeters. The distance between them should be about 4 centimeters, and between the rows about 15 centimeters. When planting is complete, cover the furrows with soil and then mulch.

Care

As with any plant in the garden, one must not forget about timely watering and removing weeds. In addition, the first few weeks need to cover the beds with wet newspapers. How many newspapers do you need? Minimum 1-2 layers with ventilation holes. This will make it easier to grow as it will keep the weeds from sprouting.

Many are interested in the question of how many dressings are needed to grow bulbs and when to carry them out. Three additional fertilizing per year will be enough: the first - a month after sprouting the sprouts with the use of saltpeter and superphosphate (15 grams per 0.001 ha); the second - after two weeks, but the fertilizer mixture must be diluted; the third - at the end of June, you can simply take 1 glass of wood ash per 0.001 hectares.

Harvesting

Bulb cultivation ends in August, when the leaves of the garlic begin to turn yellow. Without waiting for the complete drying of the plant, start harvesting, since seedlings overexposed in the ground are stored worse, and it will be much more difficult to plant them later.

Harvesting is best done on a cloudy day, in the morning, when the sun is not yet very active. Direct sunlight in a matter of minutes spoils the one-toothed ones, so they cannot be planted later. On a small plot, you can choose them from the ground with your own hands, but on a larger plot, especially more than 1 hectare, you will need special equipment.

Place the collected single-pronged or full-fledged bulbs under a canopy so that they dry before further cultivation or storage.

The subtleties of growing garlic

How many bulbs are needed for planting depends on how much area (hectares) on your site. Sometimes 3-4 is enough, and sometimes 20 is not enough.

If you decide to grow garlic for sale, then it is better to start a business with sowing with cloves on a small area of ​​about 1 hectare, and then grow and collect bulbs for your own seed.

Keep in mind that every year it is necessary to observe the crop rotation and not plant garlic in the same place.

You should not plant the sets after potatoes, radishes, turnips, carrots. But if peppers, eggplants, pumpkins, cucumbers or tomatoes have settled on your land plot, then planting garlic after them will be the best solution.

In any case, we advise you to plan your landing in advance.

Video "Propagation of garlic bulbs"

From this video you will learn why garlic is sown with air seeds, and how to do it correctly.