Garlic

bobloes

Hi All,

I have been growing garlic for about 5 or 6 years with varying degrees of success.  They invariably come up but I have found they do not produce a solid bulb of cloves and they tend not to store for more than about 5 months mmaximum. 

I feel a lot of my problems are to do with a watering regime which is pretty harsh, ie almost none extra unless it is proper drought conditions.  My soil is thick clay (I have added compost etc over the years) so I assume it is retaining enough for the plants.

I also have the problem that the plants tend to produce seed heads quite early and the stem splits as shown in the attached pictures.

Any advice truly welcomed.

Cheers

Bob

Obelixx

Storage quality depends on variety as much as growing situation.  Hard neck varieties don't store as long as soft neck varieties.   They need a good frost to form the cloves and then need harvesting before the cloves start to open up as that also reduces storage time.

They don't like to be wet in winter but do need watering during dry spells in spring and up to harvest time so perhaps the added compost isn't enough yet.

Have a look at this info - https://www.rhs.org.uk/advice/grow-your-own/vegetables/garlic and this - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/gardening/how-to-grow/how-to-grow-garlic-advice-from-the-rhs/