The many wonders of garlic

Now is the time to be planting these aromatic bulbs – just make sure they're plump, firm and sourced from a reputable supplier, writes FIONNUALA FALLON

LAST WEEK, hurrying along one of the laneways that criss-cross Dublin's city centre, I passed by the back entrance to a busy restaurant kitchen. From a rattling extractor fan set in the wall came a great whoosh of warm air and the glorious smell – a personal favourite – of garlic gently sautéing in hot oil. For me, it was a deliciously whiffy reminder of the fact that now is the best time to plant this aromatic bulb, which needs a long growing period as well as exposure to low temperatures (roughly eight weeks below 10 degrees) if it's to crop really well.

Garlic is surprisingly easy to grow in the garden, the allotment, the polytunnel or even in largish containers (minimum of 15cm deep), as long as you keep a few key things in mind. Foremost is the quality of the bulbs, which should be plump, firm, blemish-free and sourced from a reputable supplier.

Poor-quality garlic bulbs that are bruised, pitted, damaged or already showing signs of growth are unlikely to produce a crop of any size and may even harbour diseases such as eelworm and onion white rot – the latter being a horribly damaging disease of alliums (garlic, chives, leeks, spring onions, onions, shallots) that's almost impossible to eradicate once it's established itself in any garden. Equally, don't be tempted to use bulbs bought from the vegetable shelves of the local supermarket, for the simple reason that not only are they very possibly a variety unsuited to the Irish climate but they're also often treated with a chemical that inhibits the cloves from sprouting. Instead of growing as they ought to, these chemically-treated garlic cloves will disappoint by sitting in the soil for months, quietly sulking below ground.

Before planting, give some thought to site selection and preparation. Garlic does best in a very sunny spot and a very fertile, free-draining, neutral soil. If your soil is poor, add homemade garden compost but not manure (no member of the allium family enjoys freshly-manured soils). If it's heavy or prone to waterlogging – an increasing problem given the more extreme weather patterns – then add plenty of horticultural grit or even a few bucketloads of very small pebbles. Better still, grow your garlic in a raised bed, which should protect the bulbs from the problems associated with winter flooding. Finally, keep in mind the basic principles of crop rotation and don't plant into soil that has grown any member of the allium family within the last two years.

If it's your very first time growing this kitchen staple, don't make the classic novice's mistake of planting the entire bulb. Instead, you'll need to gently prise away the individual cloves, making sure not to bruise or damage them as you do so.

Beware, also, of planting the cloves the wrong way up – the gently pointed tip should be uppermost, and not the flattened base with its wispy remnants of a root system. Plant the individual cloves 15cm-20cm apart, in rows 45cm apart, and deep enough so that their tips are covered with a 3cm-thick layer of soil.

Mark the site clearly with a label, as it's all too easy to forget their exact position and then later accidentally dig-up or hoe the tops off the developing bulbs during a bout of enthusiastic spring-cleaning (I've done this many times).

Make sure that container-grown plants are regularly watered. After that, it's simply a case of keeping the plants weed-free and nipping out any curling flower scapes that appear (very tasty in their own right) as these will prevent the bulb from fully fattening up. Garlic planted in October-November should be ready for harvesting next summer. Signs that the bulbs are ripe will vary with the type of garlic (see below), but as a rough rule of thumb, 'hardnecks' are ready once the leaves start to change colour while 'softnecks' are ready once the stems begin to droop.

Knowing your garlic from your onions:0 Garlic is divided into two basic groups – hardnecks and softnecks. Hardnecks are hardier, produce flower stalks or 'scapes' and fatter but fewer cloves.

Examples of hardneck types that can be planted in late October/ November include 'Vallelado', 'Lautrec Wight', 'Purple Heritage Moldovan'. In comparison, softnecks generally don't produce a flower, are less tolerant of cold winters and store/travel better. Examples of softneck garlic that can be planted in late October/ November include 'Christo', 'Thermidrome', 'Messidrome' 'Marco', 'Early Purple Wight', and 'Solent Wight'. Reliable Irish stockists include quickcrop.ie, which also stocks the giant 'elephant garlic', fruithillfarm.com, thesecretgardener.comand mrmiddleton.com

Read it:Garlic, The Mighty Bulb by Natasha Edwards (of The Garlic Farm, thegarlicfarm.co.uk), published earlier this year by Kyle Books (£14.99) which is a comprehensive guide to growing and cooking garlic as well as using it medicinally.

Diary Date

A basketmaking course with Irene Kelly takes place on Saturday, November 10th at Lavistown House, Kilkenny, 10am – 5.30pm. Cost €90 (includes lunch coffee). Suitable for complete newcomers or the more experienced. See

[ lavistownhouse.ie ]

or tel: 086-840 7754.

A lecture by Billy Moore of the Alpine Garden Society in Ireland, "The Crevice Garden – the new way to grow alpines", takes place on Wednesday November 7th, 8pm at Wesley House, Leeson Park, Dublin 6. See rhsi.ie