How Does My Garlic Grow? Time to Harvest

In December 0f 2017 I started four cloves of garlic in a pot on my windowsill. Now, ten months later, I think I will harvest my crop of three sprigs. I did pull the fourth one a couple of months ago to see where it had gotten as far as the number of cloves. I was a little disappointed to see that it looked more like a green onion than a garlic. So, I left the final three to grow for another few months.

Garlic plant before harvest

 

Today, I decided it was time to pull it all up. I read a number of articles last year, when I started this project, that stated it would take about 9 months for cloves to form. The greens did grow quickly, but the cloves? Well, not so much. After a little bit of careful pulling I found the plant to be quite root bound.

Root Bound Garlic

I suppose this isn’t too surprising because of how fast they grew and the size of the pot. Add to the fact that they grew much too close to one another it all resulted in what looks like green onions.

Garlic peeled to reveal root

After peeling back the outer layers I found a beautiful white core and a strong aroma of garlic. Although these beauties were not segmented into cloves, I’m still very happy. If the smell is any indicator of the flavor then these will be a successful first attempt at growing garlic.

For next time? The cloves will be started in a pot, but they will mature in the ground. Garlic seems to need the room that my pot could not provide.

Do you grow garlic? Share your tips for success in the comments.

Until next time!

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