December 2007 -- All About Garlic

Which popular food/herb/medicine plant is the easiest to grow, not just here in WV, but in many countries? Hint #1: It is consumed in appetizers, salads, breads, meat and poultry dishes, soups, stews, vinegars, pasta dishes, fish . . . and more. Hint #2: Medicinal uses include blood clot prevention, infection fighter of the lungs and digestive tract, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, intestinal parasite control, checks fungal infections and a whole bunch more. Give up? If you guessed "the 'Stinking Rose' (a.k.a. Garlic)", you guessed right.

Growing garlic is a no-brainer. What other crop can you plant late in fall (or anytime before the ground freezes), and then pretty much ignore until harvest time in late June/early July?

True garlic is a member of the lily family under the species Allium sativum. The two sub-species are hard-necked garlic and soft-necked garlic, with many sub-varieties of each. Garlic loves sun and well-drained soil with good organic matter. Individual cloves within the whole head of garlic are separated from the head just before planting, so they don't dry out. Plant them point up, about 4" apart and at twice the depth of the height of the clove, or with a minimum of 2" of soil covering. Space the cloves equidistant in beds (4" spacing each way), or give enough space between single rows to weed and mulch, since garlic does not like competition. I like to plant in beds with 4 equidistant rows and, after the ground freezes a couple of times, lay on a thick blanket of mulch such as 4-6" of dried grass clippings saved from summer mowings. Shredded newspaper or chopped leaves also work well and eliminate much of the need to weed in spring.

Now, forget the garlic for a few months and go enjoy the festive holiday season!

Want a delicious, healthy and simple to prepare appetizer that will make your house smell divinely enticing and impress your guests? Heat your oven to 325-350 degrees. Lay a head of garlic on its side on your cutting board, and draw a sharp knife across the top of the head, just nicking off the tips of the cloves. Set the head(s) into a shallow baking dish and drizzle a scant tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil over each head. Place in oven and test for doneness in 30 minutes. Cloves will be soft and squeezable, like a tube of toothpaste, when done. Set out a plate of plain, unseasoned crackers (water crackers are great) or mini-slices of whole grain or rye bread, and have at it! Pick out a clove and squeeze the garlic paste onto the cracker or bread and enjoy. Bread can also be used to dab up the delicious oil left in the baking pan. Or save the oil to drip onto baked potatoes . . . but there's seldom any left to save, it's that good.

When the holidays are over, check your garlic to see if green leaves are poking above the mulch. Sparingly pinch off a leaf

here and there to enjoy on a salad or sandwich or chopped and sprinkled into a bowl of steaming soup. Renew mulch if needed and pull any cool season weeds. Early in May, keep an eye out for flower scapes. This is a tall, round stem in the center of the plant that flowers and sets seeds, if you let it.

The flowers are beautiful round heads, usually lavender to white, easy to dry and keep in everlasting arrangements. You may want to let some flower, then cut and hang to dry as the florets completely open. But be warned: You get the flower at the expense of the bulb - you can't have both from the same plant.

If it's the bulb you want, scapes need to be cut or pinched out when you see the flower bud just starting to form. When the scape is removed, the plant uses its energy to grow a larger bulb.

Observe the leaves early to mid June and watch for the lower leaves to brown. When one third to one half of the leaves have turned, it's time to dig! If you wait too long, the heads will dry and the cloves will separate as you harvest.

Gather a handful of dug plants, shake off excess soil, rubber-band the stems and hang in a shady, dry spot, such as an outbuilding or garage. Do not dry in the sun and don’t cut off the stems until garlic has cured, usually early-mid September. At that time, cut off dried foliage and store your garlic in a cool, dry spot. Store in mesh bags, pantyhose, or open-weave baskets. Do NOT store garlic in the refrigerator as it turns bitter.

Remember as you enjoy the tasty harvest in so many delicious ways, a good gardener never eats all the seed! Make sure you put some heads aside for replanting.

I wish you all a delicious and happy holiday season!