Sometimes we are really on top of the garden to do list. Everything gets planted on time, weeded regularly, and harvested on time. This autumn was not one of those periods. So this weekend we are finally planting the garlic a month late, hopefully not too late. Like other bulbs, garlic needs to winter in the ground before the spring and summer growing period, but fortunately the ground is still workable and the days are still warm enough that we might be ok. Last year we planted about 60 cloves around the perimeter of our squash bed, and this year we are filling the whole bed, which will amount to a whole lot more than that.
We were also behind on purchasing seed garlic and all of our usual sources were out by the time we got ready to order. So we are gambling: we’re planting a bag of garlic from Costco. We like to experiment in our garden, and this is a big experiment. Garlic from stores is often treated with agents that inhibit growth so they bulbs don’t sprout while at the store, so if you have to buy garlic from the store then organic is the best option. I couldn’t find organic garlic so we went with the next available choice. So we’re crossing our fingers and hoping that these little cloves will sprout for us. Obviously we’ll let you know how that goes.
I know how you feel. This has been a year where gardening had to take second place to traveling to care for sick relatives, funerals, etc... So, it's basically turning the soil and giving it a rest until spring... Come visit when you can...