Garlic (Liliaceae): Planting Time, High-Yield Techniques, and Maturity and Harvest Period

Garlic, also called garlic bulb, garlic head, hu garlic, hu, single-clove garlic, and single-clove garlic, is the collective name for plants in the garlic group. So when is it suitable to plant? How can you achieve high yields? When does it mature and get harvested? According to Grandpa Guo of Linyi, Shandong, garlic is best planted in autumn, generally around mid-September. In the north, autumn garlic planting is generally done from late September to early October. Henan, Shandong, and other places all plant in September.

How should garlic be planted to achieve high yields?

1. Pay attention to seed selection and preservation to maintain the “Jiading White Garlic” seed characteristics

Before sowing, select plump garlic cloves (about 5 grams per single clove), 6—8 cloves, disease-free, pest-free, mold-free, and knife-damage-free “Jiading White Garlic” as seed.

2. Apply sufficient base fertilizer and prepare the land finely

Before sowing, the field should be deeply plowed and finely worked to achieve a level bed surface and a complete ditch system. Generally, the bed width is 2.1 m, the ditch depth is 25—30 cm, and cross ditches and waist ditches should also be opened well. At the same time, sufficient base fertilizer should be applied: about 500 kg of commercial organic fertilizer per mu, 25 kg of garlic special fertilizer, and 10—15 kg of potassium chloride. The fertilizer should be applied before plowing to achieve soil-fertilizer mixing and improve fertilizer efficiency. It is not advisable to apply fertilizer directly into the sowing furrow, to prevent fertilizer from burning root buds and causing missing plants and broken rows.

3. Insist on timely sowing and moist emergence

Timely sowing is one of the important measures for high-quality and high-yield garlic bulbs. Sowing too early not only affects the previous crop, but also easily causes the “secondary growth” phenomenon (called flowering garlic, horsetail garlic, and whisker garlic in some places). Sowing too late cannot ensure strong seedlings overwintering, affects bolting and garlic bulb growth and development, and reduces yield. According to the climate conditions of Jiading District in recent years, sowing should preferably be done from late September to early October.

If the sowing season encounters dry weather, drought relief should be carried out before or after sowing to keep the soil moist during emergence. If there is long-term continuous rain, the ditch system should be cleared in time to drain accumulated water from the field and prevent seed rot.

4. Reasonable close planting to increase garlic bulb size

Sowing density is directly related to garlic bulb yield and bulb size. Research results and many years of practical results from high-yield garlic growers show that the reasonable density is 20,000—22,000 plants per mu, that is: row spacing 33—36 cm, plant spacing 8—9 cm.

5. Chemical weed control

After sowing and before emergence, use 100 g of 50% napropamide or 100—150 mL of 33% pendimethalin per mu, dilute with water and spray to kill weeds before winter. After spring begins, when temperatures rise (early March), after clearing field weeds, use 100—150 mL of 33% Shuitianbu (pendimethalin) per mu. For fields with broadleaf weeds, add 45 mL of 10.8% haloxyfop-R-methyl EC per mu, dilute with water and spray to kill weeds after spring.

6. Strengthen pre-winter management and cultivate robust seedlings

If garlic seedlings grow too vigorously before winter, they are prone to freeze damage and also prone to premature aging and secondary growth. Overwintering seedlings should be short and sturdy, healthy but not overly vigorous. The measures are:

(1) Apply seedling fertilizer early; immediately after full emergence, topdress with 7—8 kg of urea per mu.

(2) Increase phosphorus and potassium fertilizer; topdress with 25 kg of phosphorus fertilizer, 10—15 kg of potassium fertilizer, or 50 kg of compound fertilizer per mu.

7. Pay attention to winter management to ensure garlic seedlings overwinter safely

(1) Apply heavy winter fertilizer: winter fertilizer is mainly organic fertilizer. Organic fertilizer has complete nutrients, stable fertilizer effect, and long-lasting fertility, and can improve water storage and fertilizer retention capacity. Generally apply 25—30 loads of decomposed pig, sheep, and rabbit ash per mu. If organic fertilizer is insufficient, apply 25 kg of garlic special fertilizer per mu.

(2) Loosen the soil, control weeds, and earth up around the roots to promote root growth.

(3) Clear the ditch system: garlic likes moisture and fears waterlogging. Higher soil water content will affect root growth and development. Therefore, the ditch system must be cleared quickly so that all ditches are connected, and cross ditches and main open ditches should be cleared and deepened to ensure smooth drainage and irrigation, improve disaster resistance, and ensure high and stable garlic yields.

8. Do a good job in spring management and build a high-yield framework

Strong individual plants are the foundation of high quality and high yield. Spring Festival management should focus on three management tasks:

(1) Topdress with spring fertilizer to promote early growth; generally from late February to early March, apply 8—10 kg of urea per mu;

(2) Dredge the ditch system so that irrigation is possible in drought and drainage is possible in rain, regulate soil moisture, and promote garlic seedling growth;

(3) In early March, spray 100—150 mL of 33% pendimethalin (Shuitianbu) emulsion,

9. Strengthen late-stage management, enhance staying power, and fully utilize the role of functional leaves

The quality of garlic growth in the late stage is extremely closely related to garlic bulb yield and quality. Specifically, three key measures should be grasped:

(1) Apply heavy bolting fertilizer and bulb-growth fertilizer. In late March, apply about 15 kg of urea per mu as bolting fertilizer; in late April, apply about 20 kg of urea per mu as bulb-growth fertilizer.

(2) Control diseases. From late March to early May, depending on disease occurrence, spray about once every 5 days. The first time, use about three liang of carbendazim per mu diluted with water and spray. The second time, use about three liang of carbendazim plus three liang of jinggangmycin per mu diluted with water and spray, to control disease occurrence and spread, prevent premature aging, and protect functional green leaves.

(3) Regulate soil moisture to promote garlic bulb expansion. If drought occurs during the garlic bulb expansion period, timely drought relief has an obvious effect on increasing garlic bulb yield.

10. Harvest at the right time to improve garlic bulb yield and quality

(1) Remove the scape at the right time to avoid damaging green leaves.

(2) Harvest garlic bulbs at the right time to extend the functional period of green leaves.

When does garlic mature and get harvested?

The growth cycle of garlic varies greatly depending on the sowing period. Spring-sown garlic has a short growth period, only 90-100 days, while autumn-sown garlic has a growth period as long as 220-280 days. The garlic bulb harvest period is generally about 20 days after scape removal, when a single plant has about 4 green leaves, generally from May 25 to early June.