Very nice! Here is a couple of shots of mine as of today.
Garlic crop coming in strong
- Thread starter Tom NJ
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Beautiful! Awesome work fellas
Garlic is the ULTIMATE vegetable for stuffing any kind of roast or fowl. When I can afford steak, I usually buy top sirloin. I marinade it for 2 days in my homemade recipe marinade mixture with diced pieces of garlic mixed in. I wish I could grow my own garlic, but unfortunately I am left to buy it from WM. I do like the elephant garlic. IMO, it is stronger and has more flavor than the smaller bulbs.
Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
Garlic is the ULTIMATE vegetable for stuffing any kind of roast or fowl. When I can afford steak, I usually buy top sirloin. I marinade it for 2 days in my homemade recipe marinade mixture with diced pieces of garlic mixed in. I wish I could grow my own garlic, but unfortunately I am left to buy it from WM. I do like the elephant garlic. IMO, it is stronger and has more flavor than the smaller bulbs.
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
I kind of like garlic fries, but they're an acquired taste.
Garlic is the ULTIMATE vegetable for stuffing any kind of roast or fowl. When I can afford steak, I usually buy top sirloin. I marinade it for 2 days in my homemade recipe marinade mixture with diced pieces of garlic mixed in. I wish I could grow my own garlic, but unfortunately I am left to buy it from WM. I do like the elephant garlic. IMO, it is stronger and has more flavor than the smaller bulbs.
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
I kind of like garlic fries, but they're an acquired taste.
Originally Posted By: y_p_w
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
Actually you have that backwards. Softneck garlic (aka artichoke garlic) have non-uniform shaped bulbs (cloves upon cloves) with misshapen narrow cloves in the center. They are also harder to peel. These are the ones generally found in supermarkets because they store longer.
Hard neck garlic have a single row of fat cloves around a hard center stalk, are uniform in appearance, easier to peel, and are generally considered to have better flavor, often referred to as "gourmet garlic".
I wrote a brief paper on growing garlic I can PM to anyone who wants it.
Here are some hardneck bulbs from last year's crop.
Tom
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
Actually you have that backwards. Softneck garlic (aka artichoke garlic) have non-uniform shaped bulbs (cloves upon cloves) with misshapen narrow cloves in the center. They are also harder to peel. These are the ones generally found in supermarkets because they store longer.
Hard neck garlic have a single row of fat cloves around a hard center stalk, are uniform in appearance, easier to peel, and are generally considered to have better flavor, often referred to as "gourmet garlic".
I wrote a brief paper on growing garlic I can PM to anyone who wants it.
Here are some hardneck bulbs from last year's crop.
Tom
Originally Posted By: Tom NJ
Originally Posted By: y_p_w
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
Actually you have that backwards. Softneck garlic (aka artichoke garlic) have non-uniform shaped bulbs (cloves upon cloves) with misshapen narrow cloves in the center. They are also harder to peel. These are the ones generally found in supermarkets because they store longer.
Hard neck garlic have a single row of fat cloves around a hard center stalk, are uniform in appearance, easier to peel, and are generally considered to have better flavor, often referred to as "gourmet garlic".
I wrote a brief paper on growing garlic I can PM to anyone who wants it.
Here are some hardneck bulbs from last year's crop.
Tom
OK. I'm officially confused. I remember reading about it somewhere and got the varieties confused.
However, around here there are basically only two kinds that I see in our markets. In California most markets will have the origin of produce next to the price. I haven't seen Chinese garlic sold loose in a while. It's usually available in bagged packs. Now that you describe it, yeah - that must be hardneck. However, the stuff imported from China is much cheaper but has less flavor and complexity. The neck is always completely cut off and the roots are completely gone. I've also heard that they might be bleached to make them appear whiter.
I do recall when there was a severe shortage of garlic in California a couple of years ago. I saw price spikes and the origin was often Peru or Spain. Most markets (other than Asian groceries) didn't stock Chinese garlic.
Originally Posted By: y_p_w
The biggest difference is between hard neck and soft neck garlic. Most of the garlic sold in the world is soft neck garlic from China. It's generally pretty weak tasting, but the bulbs are extremely uniform and the cloves are easy to peel. Hard neck garlic has all these misshapen cloves of different sizes, but I think it's a better and stronger flavor.
Actually you have that backwards. Softneck garlic (aka artichoke garlic) have non-uniform shaped bulbs (cloves upon cloves) with misshapen narrow cloves in the center. They are also harder to peel. These are the ones generally found in supermarkets because they store longer.
Hard neck garlic have a single row of fat cloves around a hard center stalk, are uniform in appearance, easier to peel, and are generally considered to have better flavor, often referred to as "gourmet garlic".
I wrote a brief paper on growing garlic I can PM to anyone who wants it.
Here are some hardneck bulbs from last year's crop.
Tom
OK. I'm officially confused. I remember reading about it somewhere and got the varieties confused.
However, around here there are basically only two kinds that I see in our markets. In California most markets will have the origin of produce next to the price. I haven't seen Chinese garlic sold loose in a while. It's usually available in bagged packs. Now that you describe it, yeah - that must be hardneck. However, the stuff imported from China is much cheaper but has less flavor and complexity. The neck is always completely cut off and the roots are completely gone. I've also heard that they might be bleached to make them appear whiter.
I do recall when there was a severe shortage of garlic in California a couple of years ago. I saw price spikes and the origin was often Peru or Spain. Most markets (other than Asian groceries) didn't stock Chinese garlic.
I grow my own as a perennial. I harvest the green leaves to use fresh and the seed heads in the late summer. They are usually pea sized garlic bulbs. It was some garlic I found growing in the ditch 40 yeas ago or so. The bulbs are a bit larger than a thumbnail and split three ways every year if left in the soil. They sprout back up in the fall and if I'm lucky the greens will stay green all winter. To much sun will bleach them out until spring. It's up about a foot here in Central Illinois even with the cold weather in April.
Originally Posted By: y_p_w
However, the stuff imported from China is much cheaper but has less flavor and complexity. The neck is always completely cut off and the roots are completely gone. I've also heard that they might be bleached to make them appear whiter.
Yes some 70+% of garlic found in supermarkets are softnecks from China, and the roots are required to be completely removed to avoid bugs taking a ride in the roots. Sometimes these garlic are treated to avoid sprouting in transportation and storage, and may not grow if you use them for seed.
However, the stuff imported from China is much cheaper but has less flavor and complexity. The neck is always completely cut off and the roots are completely gone. I've also heard that they might be bleached to make them appear whiter.
Yes some 70+% of garlic found in supermarkets are softnecks from China, and the roots are required to be completely removed to avoid bugs taking a ride in the roots. Sometimes these garlic are treated to avoid sprouting in transportation and storage, and may not grow if you use them for seed.
Originally Posted By: Tom NJ
Yes some 70+% of garlic found in supermarkets are softnecks from China, and the roots are required to be completely removed to avoid bugs taking a ride in the roots. Sometimes these garlic are treated to avoid sprouting in transportation and storage, and may not grow if you use them for seed.
The ones from China often seem like they're completely dead, although I've had a few that sat around a while and started sprouting. Again - I much prefer the domestic garlic.
Yes some 70+% of garlic found in supermarkets are softnecks from China, and the roots are required to be completely removed to avoid bugs taking a ride in the roots. Sometimes these garlic are treated to avoid sprouting in transportation and storage, and may not grow if you use them for seed.
The ones from China often seem like they're completely dead, although I've had a few that sat around a while and started sprouting. Again - I much prefer the domestic garlic.
Originally Posted By: BlueOvalFitter
I do like the elephant garlic. IMO, it is stronger and has more flavor than the smaller bulbs.
Just FYI, elephant garlic is not actually garlic - it is in the leek family. Most complain that it is weaker than true garlic, but tastes vary. I grew it one year and didn't like it at all. I mostly grow Music, which also produces huge cloves, but not nearly as large as elephant garlic.
I do like the elephant garlic. IMO, it is stronger and has more flavor than the smaller bulbs.
Just FYI, elephant garlic is not actually garlic - it is in the leek family. Most complain that it is weaker than true garlic, but tastes vary. I grew it one year and didn't like it at all. I mostly grow Music, which also produces huge cloves, but not nearly as large as elephant garlic.
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