Harvesting garlic ready for the drying out process
It’s garlic harvesting time and it’s important to dry your crop out so it lasts well into the winter. Bulbs should dry, but any rust does affect the keeping qualities, so beware.
To dry garlic, brush off the majority of the muck and put them somewhere dry and warm – a greenhouse or conservatory would be an ideal location.
Lay them out on a rack or staging where air can circulate, then just leave them to it.
If you see any black patches developing, trim up the bulb and use them first.
After three to four weeks, the foliage should be off-white and quite dry and crispy.
But if you can see any green left in the stems, or there’s a bit of ‘give’ in them, then leave them to dry a bit longer.
Now to clean them off – a filthy job. You’ll need a wide bucket to catch the rubbish, scissors and an old toothbrush.
Trim the roots close to the bulb, but don’t damage the base (the basal plate), or they won’t store well.
Strip off the papery outer layers until the bulb is clean, brush off dirt round the roots with the toothbrush and then trim the stem to the desired length.
I say ‘desired length’ because some of you will want to plait them traditionally.
All I do is bunch about six bulbs together, all different lengths, so the bulbs are not touching, then tie the stems together tightly with twine.
It’s not as pretty, but it is much faster.
Then they are hung in the cellar where it’s dry and cool – and they will usually last well into the new year.