by Greg Spinks

Created on: June 02, 2009

Garlic can be easily planted and grown in home garden. A member of the allium family(related to onions, leeks and shallots), garlic has many culinary uses in the kitchen, can be used as a companion or a repellent plant, and has a wide range nutritional and health benefits.

There are hundreds of garlic varieties. In general these can be broken into two different major groupings; hard neck and soft neck. As with planting any vegetable or herb, it pays to investigate or research before setting something in the ground.

Softneck garlic is the most commonly grown and is the variety most often seen in supermarkets. Softneck garlic is said to be easier to grow and lends itself better to mechanical processes on large garlic farms. Softneck garlics are known for a thin papery white skin which encloses numerous cloves in the garlic bulb; they have a soft stem which can then be used to braid the bulbs together.

Softnecks are broken down further into two groupings, silverskin and artichoke. Silverskin is reputed to be the best keeper after harvest and have numerous cloves within the bulb. Artichoke garlics are similar except they have fewer but much larger cloves. within the bulb.

A common mistake is to take a supermarket variety and plant it once a green shoot begins to appear. It's origins, of perhaps a thousand of miles away, and variety are generally unknown. The clove may want to grow because of artificial conditions, but not according to it's botanical clock.

Hardneck garlics have a brittle center like stem which forms a seedhead on the top about a month or somewhat longer before they can be harvested. For a larger bulb, many growers cut the stem, before it unfurls and straightens out. This step sends more of the plants energy into producing a larger bulb. The scapes, the bulbils on the top of the stem, are delicious and can be used in a variety of recipes and even pickled or frozen for future use.

There are three groupings of hardneck garlics. Rocamboles can be identified by their large tan colored bulbs with less outer wrapping. Porcelains, which are the largest and often mistaken for elephant garlic and purple garlic known for it's distinctive purple markings.

Often, these varieties can be found at farmer's markets and roadside stands. Seed catalogs will often list the varieties separately with proper descriptions and instructions for planting in proper zones. It is often worth the effort to check with local growers and gardening

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