Garlic planting time and method

After the autumn harvest, the time to plant garlic is approaching. Garlic prefers a cool climate and its seedlings have good cold resistance. After sowing, garlic will begin to sprout and take root even in low temperatures of 3 to 5 degrees Celsius. When garlic sprouts, the most suitable growth temperature range is 12 to 16 degrees Celsius. Let’s learn about the planting time and method of garlic.

1. Garlic planting time

The sowing time of garlic varies according to geographical location and variety, and is mainly divided into autumn sowing and spring sowing. Generally, the boundary is 35-38 degrees north latitude. The areas south of 35 degrees are warmer in winter, and garlic seedlings can naturally overwinter outdoors. Therefore, they are mostly chosen to be sown in autumn and harvested in early summer of the following year.

Areas north of 38 degrees north latitude have cold winters and seedlings are not easy to overwinter, so it is suitable to sow in early spring and harvest in mid-summer or late summer. Areas between 35-38 degrees north latitude can choose spring or autumn sowing according to actual conditions. Although the sowing time varies from place to place, the average daily temperature during spring sowing is usually 3-6 degrees, and the average daily temperature during autumn sowing is around 20-22 degrees.

2. Garlic planting method

1. Select the best seeds

Manual peeling, removal of the garlic tray and stem disk, grading by size, and selection of pure white garlic cloves with no red tendons, no scars, no sugar, and no shiny skin, weighing about 5 grams, is the key to high yield.

2. Sow seeds at the right time

Garlic likes cool weather and has a natural dormant period. If sowing is too early, the garlic seedlings will emerge slowly and their vigorous growth may lead to a decrease in cold resistance; if sowing is too late, the garlic seedlings will be small, insufficient nutrient accumulation will occur, and their cold resistance will be weak, affecting yield and quality.

3. Seeding density

The size of garlic cloves affects the nutrient content. Large-clove garlic has sufficient nutrients, the plant has a well-developed root system, many leaves, and a thick and long pseudostem. When harvested, the garlic stalks are thick, the garlic heads are large, and the cloves are large, and they have good commercial quality. Taking Songcheng white garlic as an example, choose garlic cloves weighing 4-5 grams and sow about 33,000 plants per acre.

4. Land preparation and sowing

To ensure high quality and high yield of garlic, sufficient base fertilizer should be applied. Fertilizers should be applied in time after the previous crop is harvested. Apply 500 kg of decomposed chicken manure and 50 kg of diammonium phosphate per mu. After plowing and harrowing, mark the land at 80 cm to make raised ridges with a height of 10 cm and a top width of 50 cm. A 15 cm high ridge can be chosen every three beds to facilitate watering. Two more rows of garlic can be planted on both sides of the high ridge. Dig four furrows 6-7 cm deep on the raised ridge, place the garlic cloves at a spacing of 10 cm between plants, cover with soil and water.

In summary, after sowing garlic, the soil must be kept moist. In northern regions, water should be applied before winter and combined with watering and fertilization. In cold regions, weeds can be covered to keep warm. In this way, the garlic will turn green quickly and grow vigorously in the spring of the following year. The sowing time and method of garlic should be flexibly adjusted according to local climate characteristics and planting habits to achieve the best planting effect.