How To Plant Garlic

How To Plant Garlic

Tom Cole from Capel Manor College in London shows you how to plant garlic. Garlic adds some flavour to your meal, so watch and learn how to plant this popular food.

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Step 1:

You will need

• Garlic cloves
• A trowel
• A garden fork
• String
• A landscape or metal rake
• Plant labels
• You might also need
• Some organic matter such as well-rotted manure

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Step 2:

Prepare the site

Loosen the soil with a fork and remove any weeds or large stones. Garlic should be planted in sunny or partially shaded sites that are sheltered from the wind. They shouldn't be planted in heavy clay soils. Use a landscape rake to create a level surface. If you have poor soil you may want to add organic matter before you start sowing the cloves.

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Step 3:

Choose your cloves

Split the head of garlic into separate cloves. The best cloves for planting are around the edge of the bulb as they should be plump and hard.

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Step 4:

Sow

An easy way to plant garlic cloves is to make rows of small holes in the soil. Lay a piece of string on the soil as a guide to make sure you dig the rows in a straight line. Each row should be about 30 centimetres apart. Use a trowel to dig small holes about 5 centimetres deep. The cloves should be positioned about 15 centimetres apart with the tips pointing upwards.

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Step 5:

Cover

Fill in the trenches by gently sweeping the soil back over the cloves.

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Step 6:

Water

If you are planting your cloves in Autumn, you won't need to water them after planting unless the soil is very dry. If you are planting in Spring they may need watering to keep the soil moist.

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Step 7:

Label

You may want to label your garlic so you know where and when they were planted.

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Step 8:

Leave to grow

If planted in Autumn, your garlic will be ready to be harvested by late Spring.