How to harvest garlic scapes? Remember these four tips

In recent years, many garlic farmers have changed the past cultivation method of growing green garlic and digging up green garlic for market into the cultivation method of harvesting garlic scapes and digging up garlic bulbs for market. Among them, quite a few farmers, because they do not know how to harvest garlic scapes scientifically, end up with poor-quality garlic scapes, low yields, small garlic bulbs, and large reductions in output. To help garlic farmers both harvest high-quality, high-yield garlic scapes and achieve the good benefit of a bumper garlic bulb harvest, here are four "tips" for scientifically harvesting garlic scapes.

1. Choose the right harvest time when the "scape tip" bends nearly a full circle. Garlic scapes must be harvested at the right time. Harvesting too early will result in a low garlic scape yield because the scape has not fully emerged, and after harvesting, a section of "surplus scape" will extend out again. Harvesting too late will not only affect the fresh, tender quality of the garlic scapes because the scapes are "too old", but also, because after the garlic scapes are harvested the leaves are already nearing senescence, less energy is transported to the underground garlic bulbs for growth, affecting the garlic bulb yield. The most suitable harvest time is: when the garlic scape has emerged and the "scape tip" bends nearly a full circle.

2. Choose cloudy days or after the sun slants west on sunny days for harvesting. When harvesting garlic scapes, "wounds" are left on the stems and leaves of the garlic. If harvested under strong sunlight on a sunny day, the large amount of transpiration and excessive water loss will shorten leaf lifespan and affect garlic bulb growth. Cloudy days and the time after the sun slants west on sunny days are the best harvest weather. When harvesting on rainy days, take care to step as little as possible between the garlic rows to prevent soil compaction.

3. Cleverly use a "needle" when harvesting, picking the scapes without picking the leaves. In the past, many garlic farmers would pinch off the garlic scapes together with the garlic leaves when harvesting. This method cuts off more than half of the source of life for garlic bulb growth. The best method is to use a "large needle" for sewing clothes or sack openings to pierce into the part where the garlic scape is to be picked, slit vertically upward from below, then pinch off the garlic scape and pull out the garlic scape. This leaves all the leaves for garlic bulb growth.

4. Apply fertilizer promptly once after harvesting. After harvesting garlic scapes, the garlic must promptly replenish nutrients. Generally, apply 1000-1500 kg of decomposed dilute human and livestock manure urine per mu as a drench, or 100-150 g of potassium dihydrogen phosphate plus 0.5-1 kg of urea for foliar topdressing.