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What are the simple storage methods for garlic?

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Garlic intended for storage should be harvested at the right time on a sunny day when the leaves begin to turn yellow. At harvest, first loosen the soil beneath the garlic so the plants can be pulled easily from the soil. After harvest, pile the garlic up, cover the bulbs with the garlic leaves and sun-dry for 2--3 days; when the garlic stalks begin to wilt, trim the roots and basal plate and cut off the leaves and stems, then place the bulbs into baskets. It is best to sun-dry the bulbs or dry them artificially. For artificial drying, a temperature of 30°C and a relative air humidity of about 50% are suitable; this helps accelerate drying of the bulbs, promote dormancy

Garlic intended for storage should be harvested at the right time on a sunny day when the leaves begin to turn yellow. At harvest, first loosen the soil beneath the garlic so the plants can be pulled easily from the soil. After harvest, pile the garlic up, cover the bulbs with the garlic leaves and sun-dry for 2--3 days; when the garlic stalks begin to wilt, trim the roots and basal plate and cut off the leaves and stems, then place the bulbs into baskets. It is best to sun-dry the bulbs or dry them artificially. For artificial drying, a temperature of 30°C and a relative air humidity of about 50% are suitable; this helps accelerate drying of the bulbs, promote dormancy and extend the storage period.

1. Low-temperature storage: Before storage, the bulbs should be dried; if they are not dried, the bulbs will rot due to excessive humidity. Garlic should generally be stored at a temperature of 0.6--0°C, a relative air humidity of 65%--70%, in a ventilated, dry, smoke-free vegetable cellar or house. This method can store garlic for 6--7 months.

2. High-temperature storage: After garlic goes through a low-temperature dormant stage, it will sprout rapidly at 5--18°C. Keeping harvested garlic stored continuously in a high-temperature environment of 30--34°C can keep it fresh for more than a year. In addition, under conditions of 40%--50% relative humidity, the respiratory metabolism of the bulbs can also be inhibited, delaying sprouting. Low oxygen and high carbon dioxide can likewise inhibit respiration and sprouting of the bulbs.

Garlic kept for seed should be stored at high temperature, preferably at about 15°C and a relative humidity not exceeding 70%, as this helps improve seed quality. If the temperature can be kept stable at -1--3°C in winter, then changing to a high-temperature treatment of 18--20°C about 40 days before sowing can also achieve the same fresh-keeping effect.

3. String-hanging storage: At harvest, pull up the garlic plants with the roots; remove bulbs that are too large, too small, rotten, mechanically damaged, or dampened by rain. Then use a knife to cut off the roots and part of the basal plate along the base of the bulb, leaving only 10--15cm of the false stem, and be careful to cut the basal plate flat. After sun-drying or artificial drying, string the false stems of the bulbs together with galvanized iron wire and hang them under the eaves in front of or behind the house; or first tie the garlic in bunches of 8--10 bulbs each, then hang them in rows on iron wire or nylon rope under the eaves to air-dry naturally. In summer and autumn, they can be hung in a temporary shade shed, a cool room, or a ventilated storage warehouse; in winter, it is best to move them into a ventilated storage warehouse to avoid moisture and freezing.

4. Rice husk burial: First spread a layer of rice husk about 2cm thick on the bottom of a box, basket or burial pit, then add a layer of garlic bulbs (2--3 bulbs high) and a layer of rice husk, piling them up layer by layer until about 5cm from the container opening, then cover with rice husk so that the bulbs are not exposed to the air.

5. Chemical storage: Within 7 days before garlic harvest, spray with an aqueous solution of maleic hydrazide (MH) at a concentration of 0.1%--0.15%. The solution must be sprayed evenly, and the upper and lower surfaces of the leaves must be covered with fine droplets. If it rains within 24 hours after treatment, spray again after the weather clears; generally, after spraying, the garlic can be kept until new garlic comes on the market. The bulbs can be hung or stacked in a ventilated, cool place for preservation. Garlic kept for seed must not be sprayed with maleic hydrazide.

6. Coating film preservation: First melt paraffin into liquid paraffin, then dip the sun-dried garlic bulbs briefly in the liquid paraffin. The temperature of the liquid paraffin should not be too high, and the dipping time should not be too long; it is enough to coat them evenly and thoroughly. This method can store the bulbs until May of the following year.

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