How to Grow Garlic: The Complete Beginner's Guide
Updated: Sep 28
You can grow garlic (Allium sativum) by planting individual cloves in October or November, pointed end up, about 2.5 cm below the surface and 15 cm apart. Garlic needs a cold winter to split into cloves, so autumn planting gives the biggest bulbs in Ireland and the UK. The bulbs are ready to lift in June and July, when the lower leaves turn yellow.
Garlic is one of the easiest crops to grow: it goes in when the rest of the garden is winding down, needs little care over winter, and one bulb multiplies into a whole row. This guide covers choosing garlic, planting, winter and spring care, common problems, and harvesting and curing for storage. At the end we look at perennial alternatives that come back every year.
Garlic Quick Facts
Latin name: Allium sativum
Plant: October to November (softneck can also go in February to March, with smaller bulbs)
Planting depth: tip 2.5 cm below the surface
Spacing: 15 cm apart, rows 30 cm apart
Cold needed: 1 to 2 months below 10°C for bulbs to split into cloves
Soil: well-drained, fertile, pH 6.0 to 7.5
Position: full sun
Harvest: June to July
Storage: 6 to 9 months (softneck), 3 to 5 months (hardneck)
Main problems: rust, white rot, waterlogging
Step 1: Choose Your Garlic
Garlic falls into two main types, and the one you choose affects flavour, storage life and how it grows.
Softneck garlic: higher yields, stores for longest, and rarely sends up a flower stalk. Reliable for Irish gardens. Varieties include Solent Wight and Messidrome.
Hardneck garlic: fewer, larger cloves with a stronger, more complex flavour, and an edible flower stalk (scape) in early summer. Stores for less time. Varieties include Lautrec Wight and Chesnok Red.
Early types: varieties such as Early Purple Wight are ready from late May, useful if rust is a problem later in the season.
Always plant garlic bought for growing rather than bulbs from the shop. Supermarket garlic is often grown in warmer climates, may not suit Irish conditions, and can carry viruses or disease.
Step 2: Prepare the Soil
Choose a sunny, open spot that has not grown onions, leeks or garlic for at least three years.
Dig in well-rotted compost a few weeks before planting. Avoid fresh manure.
Garlic hates sitting in wet soil over winter. On heavy clay, plant on a ridge or in a raised bed, or start cloves in modules in a cold frame and plant out in spring.
Aim for a pH of 6.0 to 7.5.
For more on building fertile soil, see our guide to composting.
Step 3: Plant Garlic Cloves
Plant from October to November, when the soil is still warm enough for roots to establish before winter.
Split the bulb into individual cloves just before planting, keeping the papery skin on. Plant only the largest, healthiest cloves; small ones produce small bulbs.
Push each clove into the soil pointed end up, with the flat base down, so the tip sits about 2.5 cm below the surface.
Space cloves 15 cm apart, in rows 30 cm apart.
Cover with soil and firm lightly. Birds sometimes pull newly planted cloves; push any back in or cover with netting for a few weeks.
Step 4: Care Over Winter and Spring
Winter: green shoots appear within a few weeks and sit through the winter. Garlic is fully hardy, and the cold is what makes the bulb divide into cloves. Keep the bed weed free.
Spring: as growth picks up in March, give a light feed of a balanced organic fertiliser or a mulch of compost. Keep weeding: garlic has few leaves and competes poorly with weeds.
Watering: water only during dry spells in spring and early summer, and stop watering once the leaves start to yellow, so the bulbs ripen and store well.
Scapes: hardneck garlic sends up a curled flower stalk in early summer. Snap it off when it curls. This directs energy into the bulb, and scapes are delicious lightly fried or in pesto.
Step 5: Prevent Common Garlic Problems
Rust: orange spots on the leaves, very common in wet Irish summers. It rarely kills plants but reduces bulb size. Space plants well, avoid excess nitrogen, and grow early varieties that are harvested before rust builds up.
White rot: yellowing leaves and white, fluffy fungus at the base of the bulb. It survives in soil for many years, so never grow alliums in affected ground again.
Rotting cloves: usually waterlogged soil. Improve drainage or plant on ridges.
Small bulbs: late planting, small cloves, poor soil or not enough winter cold.
Allium leaf miner: larvae tunnel into leaves and bulbs. Cover with fine insect mesh in spring and autumn.
Step 6: Harvest and Cure Garlic
Garlic is ready when the lower third of the leaves have turned yellow, usually June for early and hardneck types and July for softneck. Don't wait until all the leaves are brown, or the bulbs start to split open and won't store well.
Loosen the soil with a fork and lift the bulbs carefully. Don't pull them by the stem.
Cure the bulbs for 2 to 4 weeks in a dry, airy place out of direct sun, such as a shed, porch or polytunnel, until the skins are papery and the necks are dry.
Trim the roots and stems, or plait softneck garlic for hanging.
Store in a cool, dry place. Softneck keeps for 6 to 9 months and hardneck for 3 to 5 months.
Save a few of your best bulbs to plant again in autumn.
FAQ: Growing Garlic
When should I plant garlic in Ireland?
Plant garlic from October to November. Garlic needs 1 to 2 months of cold below 10°C to split into cloves, so autumn planting gives the biggest bulbs. Softneck garlic can also be planted in February or March, but bulbs will be smaller.
How deep should I plant garlic cloves?
Plant each clove pointed end up, so the tip is about 2.5 cm below the surface. Space cloves 15 cm apart in rows 30 cm apart.
Can I plant garlic from the supermarket?
It will often grow, but it is not recommended. Shop garlic may be a variety suited to warmer climates, can carry disease into your soil, and is sometimes treated to stop sprouting. Garlic bought for planting gives better, healthier crops.
When is garlic ready to harvest?
Garlic is ready when the lower third of the leaves have turned yellow, usually in June or July. Lift it before all the leaves die back, or the bulbs split and store poorly.
Why is my garlic not forming cloves?
A single round bulb with no cloves usually means the garlic didn't get enough cold, was planted too late, or was planted from a very small clove. Plant large cloves in October or November for the best results.
Perennial Garlic: Plant Once, Harvest for Years
Garlic is lifted and replanted every year. If you would like garlic flavour from a plant that stays in the ground, two perennials are well worth growing.
Elephant garlic (Allium ampeloprasum) is the closest match. It is related to leeks rather than true garlic, and produces huge bulbs up to 10 cm across with large cloves and a milder, sweeter flavour, ideal for roasting whole. Plant the cloves in autumn in the same way as garlic. Lift the biggest bulbs in summer and leave some in the ground, and the clump will keep producing year after year.
For fresh garlic flavour through the growing season, garlic chives (Allium tuberosum) are a hardy perennial with flat, garlicky leaves you can cut from spring to autumn, and white flowers in late summer that pollinators love. They grow happily at the edge of a bed or under fruit trees.
Comments