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As we get ready for Halloween, it’s the perfect time to think about how you can naturally vampire-proof your garden. Planting garlic around the perimeter will protect your veggie beds from getting tramped in the night while they vant to suck your bloooood.
In all seriousness, it’s a good reminder to plant garlic when you start thinking about Halloween in Vancouver.
There aren’t a whole lot of vegetables that you plant right in the middle of the fall as growth is slow and a thick skin (figuratively) is necessary to make it through the winter. Garlic should be planted between 3 and 6 weeks before the ground freezes, to ensure there is enough time for the roots to develop. The moisture and cold of the soil will wake the bulb from dormancy and start this process.
Choose Your Bulbs
When planting garlic in your garden, it’s best to use heads grown specifically for planting. Store bought garlic can carry disease or be treated with chemicals, both of which can be difficult to remove from your soil once planted. Buy seed from a trusted source like a seed company or farmer’s market vendor that you trust. I also do this when Saving Heirloom Tomato Seeds.
Site Selection
Garlic likes a sunny location but only needs enough room for the bulbs to reach full size. Space plants around 6” apart and they should have enough room. Space them farther apart for large bulbs and closer together for smaller ones.
Garlic is perfect planted at the back of a border or vegetable garden. Keep in mind that the bulbs won’t be fully matured and ready for harvest until summer, so plan around this when selecting a location.
Soil Preparation
Get soil ready for planting by mixing in some yummy compost then covering with a layer of good quality top soil. Garlic will do well in loose, nutrient rich soil with good drainage. I mixed in my own compost and topped it off with SEA SOIL, which is a high quality top soil made of composed bark and fish waste.
Planting
Break apart your garlic head into cloves just before planting so that the nodes at the bottom don’t dry out and can set roots quickly.
Each clove will have a point top end were the stem and laves will grow from, and a wider, flat bottom part where the roots will form.
Dig a hole and plant the clove tip side up so that the tip is 2” below the surface.
Cover with soil and mulch to conserve moisture and nutrients over winter. A good mulch for the winter is a layer of leaves covered by a layer of cardboard. Just don’t forget to remove the cardboard in early spring so the leaves and stems can grow up through the soil.
Thank you to SEA SOIL for providing the soil for this weekend project. While the SEA SOIL was provided at no charge, I would have gladly purchased it for this project as it is my very favourite soil.
I love garlic with a passion! I don’t think a day goes by without using at least half a bulb of the glorious stuff but growing it is another matter here on Serendipity Farm. It might keep the vampires away BUT it actively encourages the wallabies who ADORE all things allium. They ate my chives, they eat my garlic and despite my best efforts, unless the garlic is enclosed somewhere it never manages to keep more than a few centimetres of greenery. I have planted all of my garlic out in old tyres now and have had to cover it with wire mesh to give it a bit of protection…the things that we gardeners will do to grow something of worth in our gardens! ;)