I planted a couple of bought garlic plants this year, and unfortunately they
didn't do very well.

However, a strange flower grew at the tip, and when I broke it open it
seemed to be a large number of mini garlic cloves. What are these?

Can I plane standard cloves of garlic as bought at a market in France or
must I use ones from the garden centre?

Thanks,


Lee.

"Lee BARRASS" wrote:

However, a strange flower grew at the tip, and when I broke it open it
seemed to be a large number of mini garlic cloves. What are these?

Looks like you have a "hardneck" type garlic... these produce bulbils that
can, indeed be planted in the fall, but it will take a couple of seasons to
produce full-sized bulbs. Too late now, but these should be cut off when
they appear to put all the energy into the bulb.

Store-bought garlic is dicey, because you don't know the variety and where
it does best. Some people do fine with it; I stick with known varieties.
Like quality seed, it's cheap compared to the work of growing it.


Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at www.albany.net/~gwoods
Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1200' elevation. NY WO G

On Fri, 08 Aug 2003 14:03:39 -0400, Gary Woods wrote:

Store-bought garlic is dicey, because you don't know the variety and where
it does best. Some people do fine with it; I stick with known varieties.
Like quality seed, it's cheap compared to the work of growing it.

Garlic in stores is often treated with a growth-inhibitor --
maleic anhydride, iirc -- to keep it from sprouting.

--
Rodger Whitlock
Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

In article , Lee BARRASS
urg@[nospam] writes
I planted a couple of bought garlic plants this year, and unfortunately they
didn't do very well.

However, a strange flower grew at the tip, and when I broke it open it
seemed to be a large number of mini garlic cloves. What are these?

Sounds more like a tree onion, which does exactly as you describe. You
can use these mini onions, or. left alone, they will produce new plants.

Can I plane standard cloves of garlic as bought at a market in France or
must I use ones from the garden centre?

Thanks,


Lee.



--
Kay Easton

Edward's earthworm page:
http://www.scarboro.demon.co.uk/edward/index.htm

In article , Kay Easton
writes
In article , Lee BARRASS
urg@[nospam] writes
I planted a couple of bought garlic plants this year, and unfortunately they
didn't do very well.

However, a strange flower grew at the tip, and when I broke it open it
seemed to be a large number of mini garlic cloves. What are these?

Sounds more like a tree onion, which does exactly as you describe. You
can use these mini onions, or. left alone, they will produce new plants.

Can I plane standard cloves of garlic as bought at a market in France or
must I use ones from the garden centre?

Thanks,


Lee.



The onions are unbearably hot. The leaves are excellent.
--
John Lloyd, West Midlands, UK

(Rodger Whitlock) wrote in
:

On Fri, 08 Aug 2003 14:03:39 -0400, Gary Woods wrote:

Store-bought garlic is dicey, because you don't know the variety and
where it does best. Some people do fine with it; I stick with known
varieties. Like quality seed, it's cheap compared to the work of
growing it.

Garlic in stores is often treated with a growth-inhibitor --
maleic anhydride, iirc -- to keep it from sprouting.


I don't think it is over here so much, Roger. I'm always finding sprouting
half-cloves that I've forgotten about in the cupboard or the veg tray in
the fridge.

I usually chop the sprouting leaves and use them as well as the cloves, but
last year I planted a few odds and ends, and they grew OK.

(If I'd been going for a real crop I'd probably have bought 'proper' bulbs,
but I was just experimenting.)

Victoria
--
gardening on a north-facing hill
in South-East Cornwall
--

On Mon, 11 Aug 2003 15:05:13 +0100, Victoria Clare
wrote:

(If I'd been going for a real crop I'd probably have bought 'proper' bulbs,
but I was just experimenting.)

I've grown garlic successfully for years and have not bought bulbs
from seed merchants for many years. In fact I think I started
originally with a supermarket bulb and one brought back from Spain by
a friend. I just save some from year to year.
I heard on the radio today that English grown garlic is so successful
that Sainsburys are selling it in favour of Spanish/French grown
bulbs.

Pam in Bristol