What an amazing plant! Garlic (Allium sativum) has been around for more than 3,000 years. It’s not that surprising really when you look at the culinary and medicinal purposes it boasts. Garlic is not only a staple in the kitchen, but its health benefits are outstanding as it is a natural antibiotic and has antiseptic properties. In the organic garden it is often used as the base for various insect deterrents and it also has anti-fungal properties. Garlic is also a very useful companion plant. This is a follow-on from my Part 1 article.
6. Maintenance. Garlic needs very little attention. Through winter you will need to water only if conditions are extremely dry. Pull any weeds as they come through.
As the weather gets warmer through spring and summer, water accordingly. If weeds
are becoming a problem or your layer of mulch has started to break down, add a
further layer of mulch (leave a few inches from the foliage free of mulch to prevent
rotting the stems).
7. Harvesting your Garlic. Your garlic bulbs should be ready to harvest when the foliage starts turning brown at the tips. Don’t leave them in the ground til the foliage has completely withered and died back or the bulbs may become over-mature, start splitting or even burst apart.
Wait for a hot, dry day to harvest. Use a hand fork or digger to loosen the soil, then carefully pry them from the ground. Pulling from the stems can cause damage. Shake any loose soil from the bulbs and leave them to ‘cure’ for a few weeks. Hang them by their stems in bunches in a dry, well ventilated area. Your garden shed is ideal.
They can also be dried on racks. Either way, you want to prevent mould or mildew from forming. You must never wash your bulbs. If they don’t dry out properly they may rot. Cut off any mouldy stems immediately as it can spread very quickly to your precious bulbs.
After several weeks you can cut off the stems and store the bulbs in a string or hessian bag, using as you need them. Or you can plait the stems together as has been done traditionally for many centuries and add some cottage charm to you kitchen. You just cut off each bulb as you need it.
Preserving your excess. There are many ways to preserve any excess garlic you have grown. Do some research before choosing a method as the beneficial properties of garlic change with various preservation methods. You can pickle garlic in vinegar, freeze it, dry it. There is a risk of botulism if you preserve garlic in oil – even refrigerated – for more than three weeks.
Health benefits. Garlic has been used medicinally throughout history. Many scientific studies have been completed that show beyond reasonable doubt that eating garlic improves your overall health. More specifically garlic:
* Can lower blood pressure
* Lowers or helps regulate blood sugar
* Helps remove heavy metals from the body
* Is a potent, natural anti-biotic
* Has anti-fungal and anti-viral properties
* Dramatically reduces yeast infections
* Can help prevent blood clots from forming
There are probably many more health benefits to regularly including garlic in your diet. It has also been shown that garlic tablets are less effective than ingesting live garlic. I just love it and use it as a base – along with onions – in almost all my savoury cooking. And just for the record, I hardly ever get sick.
Related Articles
How to Grow Garlic in your Organic Garden – Step by Step. Part 1
By: Julie Williams | 20/03/2007 | Gardening
What an amazing plant! Garlic (Allium sativum) has been around for more than 3,000 years. It’s not that surprising really when you look at the culinary and medicinal purposes it boasts. Garlic is not only a staple in the kitchen, but its health benefits are outstanding as it is a natural antibiotic and has antiseptic properties. In the organic garden it is often used as the base for various insect deterrents and it also has antifungal properties.
Bulbs, Tools, Supplies - Gardening Is Impossible Without Them!
By: Abhishek Agarwal | 05/12/2007 | Gardening
Want to build the perfect garden? Make sure to have all the essential equipments and see your garden grow big and beautiful.
Bulbs Planting In Autumn Ensures A Colourful Spring
By: James Kilkelly | 13/09/2006 | Advice
In the spring, a young man's fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love. Whereas in autumn a gardeners fancy turns to spring.
No sooner has autumn set in than we gardeners begin to think of spring and spring bulb planting.
Planting Bulbs The Right Way
By: J. Brian Keith | 17/06/2006 | Gardening
When shopping for bulbs, it is important to look for the firmest, plumpest bulbs you can find.
The Right Soil And Potting Techniques For A Bumper Greenhouse Harvest
By: Gerald Mason | 08/12/2007 | Gardening
You will receive a bigger harvest from your greenhouse crops if you plant them in the right soil mixture, in the proper kind of pot or other container, and shift or transplant them at timely intervals.
Soils
The first-time greenhouse grower often faces the problem of finding organic material, an essential component...
How To Use Organic Compost With Bulbs
By: Chris Dailey | 01/04/2008 | Gardening
Organic compost is a potent resource for nutrients, however, because of this, there is something that needs to be said regarding its use with bulbs and how much compost to use with these plants as you carry them over into the next season. Here are a few tips on how to use organic compost in a proper way in order to prepare your plants with bulbs to bloom in a healthy way.
How to Fight Insects & Bugs by Creating an Organic Garden
By: IC | 08/06/2007 | Gardening
How's your garden doing? Is it rich and thriving or are you constantly dealing with pest insects and bugs?.
Garlic - What it Did to Remove My Flu!
By: Rodney Ronquillo | 05/06/2007 | Nutrition
A couple of years ago, I had attended a health/nutrition and business training meeting. I was a newbie at the business and was learning as I went. It was around the month of January and during one of these in-home meetings, I started to feel as if i were passing out. I was sniffling, and getting dizzy. Pretty much, I was coming down with the flu. One of my associates asked me if i was sick and I told her that I needed to go home but was feeling sick.
Got a Question? Ask.
Ask the community a question about this article:
Frequently Asked Questions
Harvesting my banana trees
By: kirby | 14-10-2007
how does one harvest bananas
Stepping on a Sea Urchin
By: adam1980 | 14-10-2007
Why does stepping on a sea urchin hurts so much hours after it happened? There are no sign on my foot, but the pain is still there along with a minor muscle strain.
Lead in Lipstick
By: qualcosa | 14-10-2007
The FDA found unsafe levels of lead in some of the lipsticks they checked.Why is there any lead at all in lipstick? Does it have any function or did it get there accidentally?
Is it normal for a female to have whitish slippery ...
By: ann_85 | 14-10-2007
Is it normal for a female to have whitish slippery substance that is coming out from the vagina during sexual intercourse?
Chinese herbs while pregnant?
By: msminervajane | 11-10-2007
Chinese herbs ba zhen tang or eight treasures during pregnancy?
Tylenol Recall - Why?
By: baby_rhino | 11-10-2007
Why is Johnson & Johnson recalling cough and cold medicines if they are dangerous only if misused? Isn't ANY medicine dangerous when misused? Are they trying to hide something? It doesn't sound very likely, given the excellent track record J&J have with recalls, but something sounds a bit strange to me about this story.
Q&A Powered by:
Latest Gardening Articles
The Best Season for Garden Design
By: Georg Rosenbrock | 05/09/2008
Garden Designs can take a long time to do. It is best to time your garden design well in advance of spring. This provides you with enough time to finalize the design and to accomplish any hard landscaping. Having a prepared garden plan has many great advantages
10 Weed Prevention Tips
By: Carrie Wykeham | 05/09/2008
Weeds are a gardener's nightmare and can really spoil your enjoyment of you garden. A gardener's dream is to have a lush, green lawn and neat, colourful borders all free from weeds. It is said that prevention is better than cure, and this is certainly true for weeds. Let weeds...
Composting - is it Just a Load of Rubbish?
By: Steve Cownley | 05/09/2008
Everything you always wanted to know about Composting - But didn't know who to ask. Why should you compost and what are the benefits and I try and dispel some of those myths about compost and its smells.
What is a Weed? Know Your Enemy
By: Carrie Wykeham | 05/09/2008
A weed is not a specific type of plant, it is simply an unwanted plant or a plant that is growing where it is not wanted. Once upon a time, this weed was a wanted plant and may have been introduced to the locality for a particular use - to...
Tucson Landscaping: How to Save Water with Your Landscape
By: John Waters | 04/09/2008
Are you concerned about the amount of water you use in the maintenance and upkeep of your landscape? This article will provide you with ways to conserve water with Tucson landscaping tips and guidelines. Whether you're looking to save water for environmental purposes or save money on utilities, the following information will be beneficial to you and will help you avoid wasting your resources.
Phoenix Landscaping: How to Choose a Landscaper
By: John Waters | 04/09/2008
Are you looking for a professional landscaper to design your outdoor living environment? This article will provide you with important things to consider before you hire a contractor for Phoenix landscaping and design services. Whether you're looking to add functionality and beauty to an empty space or to fix an old design, the following information will help you avoid costly mistakes.
Scottsdale Landscaping: How to Save Time and Money on Your Project
By: John Waters | 04/09/2008
Before you hire just any company to plan your Scottsdale landscaping project, you should read this article. This article will provide you with some tips that will help you save time and money, and avoid hiring the wrong landscaping contractor. The following information will be beneficial to you and will help you steer clear of costly mistakes, no matter the size or scope of your project.
How to Do Hydroponics
By: Jovan Gomez | 04/09/2008
If you do not have the idea and knowledge how to do hydroponics , there are also some online website that provide informative article and hydroponics school tutorials. Hydroponics Dictionary online website have also support people to assist you on how to do hydroponics.
More from Julie Williams
Why Mulching Needs to be Part of your Organic Gardening System
By: Julie Williams | 12/02/2008 | Gardening
In today’s language mulch has come to mean any material that covers the soil to preserve moisture content, prevent soil erosion and inhibit weed growth. For organic gardening I choose materials that will break down over time, feeding my plants and contributing to the amount of humus in the soil.
Tips to Use Less Water in your Thriving Organic Food Garden
By: Julie Williams | 17/11/2007 | Gardening
Water is arguably our most precious resource. All living things need water to survive. But we don’t just want our productive organic food gardens to survive, we want them to thrive! And a growing plant uses a lot more water than one that is just surviving. Every part of the plant growing process uses water.
Grow Herbs for Cooking, Companion Plants and Flowers
By: Julie Williams | 30/10/2007 | Gardening
Herbs are such versatile plants. Their uses include medicinal, cosmetic, as essential oils for aromatherapy, as great companion plants, craft-work and of course to add mouth-watering flavours and aromas in our cooking. If you haven’t grown herbs before, just start with some really easy to grow herbs that you find particularly useful. I have an organic garden, so everything is free from chemicals.
How to Build a Fast-burning Compost Heap With Straw Bale
By: Julie Williams | 11/10/2007 | Gardening
If your attempts at composting seem to take forever to break down to a useable product, try building your next compost heap with straw bale. Remember to get organic straw bales if you have an organic garden.
The idea is to use bales of (organic) straw as the external structure of your compost heap – it will hold your composting ingredients
How to Grow Garlic in your Organic Garden – Step by Step. Part 1
By: Julie Williams | 20/03/2007 | Gardening
What an amazing plant! Garlic (Allium sativum) has been around for more than 3,000 years. It’s not that surprising really when you look at the culinary and medicinal purposes it boasts. Garlic is not only a staple in the kitchen, but its health benefits are outstanding as it is a natural antibiotic and has antiseptic properties. In the organic garden it is often used as the base for various insect deterrents and it also has antifungal properties.
10 Tips for Organic Gardening Uses of Comfrey
By: Julie Williams | 05/03/2007 | Gardening
Comfrey(Symphytum officinale)is just one of those plants that every organic garden must have growing. It also has great merit as a medicinal plant. This plant serves us so well. Propagation is by root division. But be careful with this plant as it will grow from the tiniest piece of root.
Simple Organic Methods to Combat Pests in your Veggie Garden
By: Julie Williams | 19/02/2007 | Gardening
Organic gardeners always prefer to use methods that have the least negative effect on the environment. By growing strong healthy plants we eliminate the threat of having large scale pest invasions. But when some pest populations do build up in our garden we should be asking “how can I encourage more predators?”, rather than “what should I do about all these pests?”
How to Make your Own Organic Liquid Fertilizers
By: Julie Williams | 28/01/2007 | Gardening
We all need a bit of a “pick-me-up” from time to time and your vegetables, herbs, fruits and soil will also benefit from a boost of liquid tonic every now and then. It’s not a good idea to force your plants to feed when they drink, so I don’t recommend regular weekly feeding, but just as a boost.
Home and Family 
