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Harvesting, Curing and Storing Garlic

source

Roger Doiron

Jun 24, 2010

Blog type:

how-to

I put this video together to demystify the process of timing your garlic harvest and preparing your garlic bulbs for long-term storage. Even the experts are not always in agreement on these issues, so it's easy to get confused. If you're not ready to harvest, because you haven't yet planted your garlic, you'll be more interested in this other video which walks you through that process. I hope you find this helpful and learn something new.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR, Roger Doiron

Father, husband, son, brother and uncle. Garden activist, advocate, writer, speaker and photographer. Founder of KGI and certified garden geek. Growing lots of good stuff on the coast of Maine.

Author's link

Twitter @rogerdoiron

Comments

Cielce

Fri, 06/25/2010 - 06:31

Hi Roger, Very nice video. Lots of good information! But I was wondering, do you wash/rinse some of the soil off your garlic bulbs after digging them? I dug my garlic last year and ended up with lots of soil stuck to the bulbs even after drying, of course my soil is very clay based, which is probably the problem. But if I did rinse my bulbs off would it impact the storage life?

Roger Doiron

Fri, 06/25/2010 - 06:57

Washing garlic is a topic of debate. I find that giving my bulbs a rinse with cold water right after harvest doesn't affect long-term storage, but you'll find others who say that you shouldn't. Thanks for the feedback, Cielce!

david e kelley

Sun, 07/04/2010 - 15:25

These are super, instructional videos Roger. I usually just brush off most of the dirt, bundle the plants with rubber bands (about 10-12) and hang them on the porch, in the shade, for about a month, then trim the roots and stems, give them another brushing as needed and store them inside in mesh bags and/or old panty hose. Air circulation will help them keep longer. Mine are stored, hanging from shelving in the dining room. We're pretty informal and eat most of our meals from the dinette table. I have washed the bulbs, but prefer the dry brushing method. Stay natural, David

Jessica Still

Tue, 07/20/2010 - 12:50

-- at one of our community gardens when one of the many gardeners decided it was time to harvest the green garlic! Thanks, Roger!

krisk

Wed, 07/13/2011 - 13:31

Hi Roger, It's my first year growing hardneck garlic, and I was wondering about when to harvest, since the tops don't fall over. Thanks for the timely information. It is really hot this week-- should I skip laying the garlic in the sun and go right to hanging it in the shade? thanks, Kris

Roger Doiron

Wed, 07/13/2011 - 13:52

Hi Krisk, I'm with Ed Smith: It's time to harvest garlic in the late summer when the bottom two or three leaves have turned yellow. As for skipping the sun drying, you probably can. Just be sure that there's good airflow where you'll be hanging them. You want the outer layers to dry. Good luck, Roger