Talkback: Planting garlic - Talkback

07/10/2009 at 08:52

Reply to Moss Rose: We recently took the reluctant decision to remove the 7-day weather forecast for gardeners, as there were problems with the data feed from our third party supplier. Rather than publish incomplete or erroneous data, we are now linking through to the BBC Weather page, supplied by The Met Office. We are investigating alternative sources of weather information and hope to implement a new forecasting service tailored to the needs of gardeners. Although we can’t yet provide a publication date, please be assured that we are working to resolve the matter. In the meantime, please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused. Best wishes, Daniel The Gardeners’ World web team

Gardeners' World Web User

07/10/2009 at 14:28

I to have planted the isle of wight garlic this year, it smelt so good it almost ended up in my spag boll rather than the ground. Moss you want to get the garlic in before the ground starts to cool, or gets to wet.

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 10:43

I usually plant autumn garlic in modules and overwinter in my(leanto) greenhouse.I only have a small garden so space is not always available to plant out in autumn. I too miss the GW weather forcast. I find the BBC site too complicated and not enough detail.

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 12:45

what happened to my garden this year. The ground was well prepared. The runner beans failed> The broad beans produced outer shells only. Potatoes did'nt crop well.The tomatoes got blight.Disappointed, I have grown veg for years in my back Garden.

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 15:20

I have just planted some Albigensian garlic bulbs to overwinter in my raised beds and so am delighted to hear you recommend it Pippa! I too am a great garlic lover.

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 16:32

I have planted garlic and hope that I've done so correctly. I've planted it in my veg garden(I added manure and garden compost in the Spring but none since)just below the surface of the soil. Was that deep enough?

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 16:36

I planted my garlic about a week ago in my vegetable garden in soil which had manure and garden compost added to it in the Spring but none since. I planted the bulbs just below the soil - was that right or should they be deeper? I didn't have a great crop from Autumn planted garlic this year and wondered if the depth of planting was the problem.

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 16:38

Sorry to post this twice - I thought the original post hadn't gone!!!

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 18:32

I planted garlic for the 1st time last year, but with mixed results, I did get a few bulbs up, but I think I left most of them in too long, when I came to lift them they has rotted away. How do you tell when they are ready. I am trying again this year. Any tips

Gardeners' World Web User

08/10/2009 at 20:28

I had really poor results with my garlic this year. Planted IOW in ground before Xmas - beautiful plants but scarcely anything on the end!! The others I planted in old recycling boxes with plenty of drainage but they all went rotten. I too really miss my 7day weather forecast - the nearest area BBC give for my post-code is many miles away in Yeovilton and no use to me at all

Gardeners' World Web User

09/10/2009 at 11:07

I planted solent wight las autumn and the result was disappointing. I bought them from a very reputable seed company and they were very expensive too. I will try another variety next year in the spring. Dont know what the problem was.

Gardeners' World Web User

09/10/2009 at 16:21

Miss the weather forecast too! Any idea what I can plant just now in raised bed beside my garlic and onions? Don't want to plant salad.

Gardeners' World Web User

10/10/2009 at 13:26

I am in my second year of veggie growing and have had some success and failures, garlic being on the failure side, all the gardening books I have seem to have differing views on how deep to plant the bulbs. I plant mine in pots in October (1st yr with tips showing, 2nd yr 2" deep) in my cold frame then I put them in the ground when I have room (when my brassicas have gone), then when the leaves turn to yellow in summer I dig them up and the result is very disappointing - very small bulbs! Can someone pls help. Oh, I too am very dissapointed that the excellent weather forecast has gone, it was great for knowing when to look out for frosts.

Gardeners' World Web User

11/10/2009 at 19:01

I have to smile reading the reports on garlic, I gave bulbs to my daughter to grow but after the length of time that should have grown decent store there were these miniture bulbs no bigger than a finger nail,(really cute) we still laugh as they were perfect.

Gardeners' World Web User

12/10/2009 at 10:00

I plant it at varying depths depending on the time of planting and the conditions, but as long as it is below the soil, and not mroe than an inch deep (think this covers all the variations listed!) I don't think you should have problems. As for harvesting, I can't wait until it is really ready and usually start before the foliage starts to yellow -this makes for a particularly juicy crop. But the majority I try to lift once the foiliage has yellowed and on a dry, warm day.

Gardeners' World Web User

12/10/2009 at 16:03

Thank you Pippa, I'll try that this year.

Gardeners' World Web User

15/10/2009 at 17:05

i planted garlic for the first time last year and it was a great success. I lifted it when it started flopping over. I will be planting mine in november.

Gardeners' World Web User

16/10/2009 at 05:20

new to all this, but love garlic as much as my garden, i am trying garlic growing for the first time.

Gardeners' World Web User

16/10/2009 at 10:10

I grew some wonderful Solent Wight and Blanak last autumn, following Pippa's advice about ridges in an earlier blog. The spring-planted ones grew hardly at all, so I've left them in the ground to see what happens (if anything). Also disappointed about the weather forecast disappearance!

Gardeners' World Web User

17/10/2009 at 19:32

I have grown garlic for the last two years and this year my garlic was useable but on the small side. I noticed some rust on the leaves and advice books said that rust can stunt growth and lead to rotting off. As well as removing any leaves with rust, the advice was to harvest early. Can rust be treated or how long do I now need to avoid garlic in this area?