Garlic, good for you and easy to grow.
Continued from a previous page but here is a synopsis: On the North Coast, garlic is grown during the rainy season. Plant the bulbs at Hallowee, in well-worked and fertile soil.
Fertilizing
Little green stems will pop up about a month or so after planting. If you wish you can put a little complete fertilizer (12-12-12) around them at this time, just scratch it into the surface. Feed them again in the spring, but quit around the middle of April.
Watering and Weeding
Weed. That's important. Garlic does not compete well with weeds, and remember, you want the biggest plant you can get. Mulching the soil will help, but it's good to temporarily pull it off in early spring to help the soil warm up.
When scapes (flowers) appear in the spring, cut them off at the earliest opportunity to keep the plant's energy going into the bulb. Use the mild-flavored scapes in stir fries, salads, soups, casseroles, etc.
Here on the North Coast, the rainy season provides all the water that garlic needs, from beginning to end. After the rains end, the soil has enough moisture in it to finish the crop. Watering at this time will only introduce molds and fungi as the bulbs are filling out.
Harvesting
Usually the bottom leaves will have dried out around the end of May. This indicates the plant is ready to harvest. But you can't always go according to the calendar. It's the weather conditions that determine the best time, so dig up a test plant or two. Using the spading fork, dig deeply to get under the bulb and lift the entire plant out of the ground. Dug too early, the bulb will not have developed fully, and if lifted too late will have opened up and be full of dirt (but still usable).
Lay the plants in a shady spot to dry them; spread them out, hang them up, whatever you can do to provide plenty of ventilation. After a few weeks you can cut off the tops and the roots. The bulbs will keep for up to six months in a normal well-ventilated area. Don't eat them all, save some nice bulbs for the next planting, but plant in a different spot to prevent disease and nutrient deficiencies.
If your goal is making a braid, plant a softneck variety of garlic, and start the braiding process while the tops are still pliable, perhaps a week after harvest. Leave only a few leaves on each bulb when constructing a braid.