Growing Garlic

Allium sativum : Amaryllidaceae / the onion family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
        P P            

(Best months for growing Garlic in New Zealand - cool/mountain regions)

  • P = Plant cloves
  • Easy to grow. Plant cloves. Best planted at soil temperatures between 50°F and 95°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 4 - 5 inches apart
  • Harvest in 17-25 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Beets, Carrots, Cucumbers, Dill, Tomatoes, Parsnips
  • Avoid growing close to: Asparagus, Beans, Brassicas, Peas, Potatoes

Your comments and tips

02 Jun 13, Darren (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
You mentioned using the shoots,but how does that effect the bulb?
02 Jun 13, Andrew (Australia - temperate climate)
Hello there, can anyone tell me if I can use cloves from garlic that has been sitting inside my fridge to plant them? Im new to this but would like to start growing my own garlic as I eat it a lot, thanks heaps!
05 Jun 13, Matty T (Australia - temperate climate)
Buy some Australian grown garlic as it won't have been treated. Put in the fridge for a week. Separate the cloves and plant out, but you'd better do it soon. Make sure you put some compost and NPK fertiliser on them. Add some nitrogen fertiliser in the spring. They are ready for harvest when the stalk goes a bit soft and droops at ground level. Enjoy your fresh garlic!
16 May 13, chanel (South Africa - Semi-arid climate)
We live in Kokstad which is perfect for the garlic, cold, dry, snow etc. Can anyone tell me if i would need to maltch the garlic, (it gets freezing and snows here) Boarder EC & KZN My first time and the shoots are doing very well!! Thanks appreciate feedback.
13 May 13, John Shannon (Australia - temperate climate)
Can I plant, just a organic garlic clove? Says can plant in May.
07 May 13, lizzy (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi. Last year we planted organic garlic that sprouted very well. When the sprouts died off we harvested the same clove we planted! No bulb had formed in any of them. It had been pretty rainy. Have planted in a pot this time. Was it something I did or just the rain? I'm in the Northern Rivers.
13 May 13, Garry&Denise (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
Hi Lizzy,we also live on the Nth Rivers..I have been growing the same Garlic for many years and find that if i prep beds with cow poo & Blood and bone with a little garden lime.You may get the same great results we get,failing that get some new bulbs and try them...Cheers
02 May 13, Joe Cassar (Australia - temperate climate)
When is the best time to sow garlic, living on the south coast of NSW. Best methods of nurturing and general care?
21 Apr 13, Violet (South Africa - Semi-arid climate)
My garlic has been in pots for 6 months. How do I know when to harvest. Does the stem have to turn brown. I live in the Southern Cape
06 Apr 13, joseph morris (South Africa - Summer rainfall climate)
can you use cloves bought from supermarket as seed and how do youknow when seed is ready. where would one get seed i live in port st johns eastern cape
Showing 641 - 650 of 919 comments

This is a transcript of a article on growing garlic in central Australia (desert). It is on ABC Rural News and may be a help to you. Trials reveal potential for garlic-growing in Northern Territory Posted 7 Oct 2016 MAP: Alice Springs 0870 A trial exploring the capabilities of seven garlic varieties in the red centre is showing some early positive results. Seven varieties of garlic are being trialled at the Northern Territory's Arid Zone Research Institute (AZRI), alongside the standard industry garlic variety, Glen Large. The Alice Springs environment will demonstrate how varieties that have never been grown commercially in the Northern Territory respond to extreme cold and extreme heat. Central Australian Horticulture Development Project manager and researcher Stuart Smith said despite challenges such as poor water quality, the results so far had been positive. "We're hoping, because we're just south of the Tropic of Capricorn, we're just a bit a little subtropical, that we're in the right area," he said. "We've got the right heat profile, right day length and we're able to grow some good bulbs. "If it'll grow here, it'll grow anywhere. "Central Australia is a bit isolated from the rest of Australia so it doesn't have the pests and diseases of the other garlic-growing areas." Plan to get garlic onto market early in season Mr Smith believes there is a market opportunity for garlic that grows early in the traditional growing season. We thought we could get a few varieties to come early on the market, so we can get some good prices for them and replace the imported garlic," he said. The first successful harvested trial crop has reached a stage of maturity that would be ready for market. "It's got a code name called AF. We're getting some good-sized bulbs out of this," Mr Smith said. "I estimate we're getting 6-8 tonnes per hectare." The DPI's Stuart Smith and agriculture minister Ken Vowles stand in a field of garlic PHOTO: Stuart Smith and Primary Industries Minister Ken Vowles discuss the garlic crop trial near Alice Springs. (ABC Rural: Katrina Beaven) Mr Smith said the early trial results were encouraging despite poor water quality and salty soils. "We have to keep watering them pretty constantly to keep moving the salt out of the root zone," he said. "The water we're using at AZRI is pretty low quality. "Most of the water other people are using in horticulture around the Central Australian region is a lot better quality than this." Mr Smith said the research results would also add value to what was being learned by a grower at Orange Creek Station, south of Alice Springs, who is conducting a commercial garlic trial this year.

- John

Please provide your email address if you are hoping for a reply


All comments are reviewed before displaying on the site, so your posting will not appear immediately

Gardenate App

Put GardenGrow in your pocket. Get our app for iPhone, iPad or Android to add your own plants and record your plantings and harvests

Planting Reminders

Join 60,000+ gardeners who already use GardenGrow and subscribe to the free GardenGrow planting reminders email newsletter.


Home | Vegetables and herbs to plant | Climate zones | About GardenGrow | Contact us | Privacy Policy

This planting guide is a general reference intended for home gardeners. We recommend that you take into account your local conditions in making planting decisions. GardenGrow is not a farming or commercial advisory service. For specific advice, please contact your local plant suppliers, gardening groups, or agricultural department. The information on this site is presented in good faith, but we take no responsibility as to the accuracy of the information provided.
We cannot help if you are overrun by giant slugs.