Garlic variety query - Flavour
 

Short question - is there a variety of Garlic or elephant garlic called
'Flavour' and if so can you point me to any online info about it pls?

Longer explanation - My dad gave me a head of garlic for growing I think he
had had to order three and only wanted the one. I queried the time of year
and he said it was a garlic for Spring planting but he didn't know what the
variety was. The piece of paper with the heads had information about
softneck, hardneck and elephant garlic so I take it was generic garlic info.
The bag I think was stamped Garlic Flavour. I say I think because I thought
nothing of it until later in the day I realised that garlic flavoured garlic
was a total nonsense, that it couldn't possibly be garlic flavoured but a
variety of garlic called 'Flavour'. I have never heard of 'Flavour' Garlic
hence the question does it exist? Googling "garlic flavour" obviously
doesn't get me very far.

The head is white, papery and quite big, about 2.5" across of about 7 big
fat cloves. This is bigger than you would normally see it in the
greengrocer's but I presume this is nothing like elephant garlic which I
have never seen. It's all pretty academic because it is going in the ground
anyway - and I don't know why it should upset me to be growing something I
don't have the full name for.

Tim W

An elephant garlic bulb can weigh a pound, but they are usually rather smaller. The commercially grown ones are usually about 4" across: Garlicfarm.co.uk has a photo of one showing it to be about twice the diameter of a golf ball, which is itself 1.7" across. But they do two varieties, one bigger than the other. The ones I have grown (so far) have been rather smaller. I've been saving cloves, getting them in on time for once, and improving the soil so I hope to do better this year. Elephant garlic has a distinctly yellowish colour to the skin between the segments. But it isn't a spring planting garlic. It lasts far better than other garlic once harvested.

I can't find a garlic variety called "flavour", nor does that sound anything like what anyone here sells as a spring-planting garlic. But what you need is info on spring planting garlics, regardless of its variety name. What I found is plant them Feb-Mar, so get it in quick. A problem with late planting is that they do need a chill, and I have seen a description of commercial growers putting their spring garlic cloves in the fridge for a bit before planting.

If you find you get a crop of one-clove garlics, best just to replant them in October (or leave them in) for next year.