Step-by-step instructions for growing garlic in open ground for beginners: steps and tips from experienced farmers
Garlic has many beneficial properties. It is used in cooking, food industry and folk medicine. Garlic grown on your own is much healthier than store-bought garlic. Growing a hot spice is not difficult - just follow the basic rules of agricultural technology and use the advice of experienced gardeners.
How to choose planting material correctly
Garlic reproduces vegetatively. Even in winter varieties, flowering arrows do not produce seeds at all, but aerial bulbs (bulbs).
To obtain cloves, carefully separate the head of garlic in parts so as not to damage the root part of the cloves and protective scales. If the result is important, then all the cloves in a row will not be suitable for planting.
Planting a tooth that is 2 times smaller than the standard one will affect the head - it will grow 3-4 times less than expected. Even if out of 5 large cloves 1 is slightly smaller than the others, it will have to be rejected. Only such strict selection will yield a harvest of large heads.
Pay attention to the number of teeth in the head. If there are no more than 4 of them (even if they are huge), you should not use a planting head, as this indicates the degeneration of the crop.
Reference. If a variety with several rows of teeth is used, then only the outer row is suitable for cultivation.
Garlic is also grown from aerial bulbs. Obtaining seed material is very simple.At the same time as planting the cloves, sow the bulbs that have ripened on the garlic shoots.
Make the sowing dense, with a planting depth of no more than 2-3 cm. Next year, one-toothed plants will grow. Use them as seed material for growing full-fledged heads.
Winter or spring – what to choose?
The first question that arises among summer residents concerns the yield of winter and spring garlic. There is a significant difference between the species.
Winter garlic is planted in September-October, but it can also be planted in the spring. A high-yielding variety produces up to 130 kg per 1 sq.m. The weight of the head reaches 150 g. The harvest is harvested in July-August and stored until December-January.
Spring garlic is planted in the garden in March-April, and up to 60-80 kg of crop is harvested from 1 acre. The head weighs 30-60 g. The harvest is harvested in August-September. Shelf life - until June-July.
Winter garlic is large and productive, but does not last long and should be used before the end of the year, while spring garlic can last until summer without loss of quality.
Conclusion: You shouldn’t stop at just one variety of garlic.
What is the difference between spring garlic and winter garlic?
The spring variety differs from the winter variety in appearance and other characteristics:
- In winter, the teeth are large, equal in size and grow evenly around a strong stem located inside the head. The spring variety has smaller cloves, there are many more of them and they grow chaotically. The stem inside the bulb is also present, but it is not so strong.
- During the growth process, winter garlic sends out a flower arrow, which forms the so-called bulbs (aerial bulbs). Spring garlic does not have shoots, with the exception of the Gulliver variety. Spring garlic reproduces by cloves.
- Winter garlic is harvested by mid-July.This species is usually used for summer consumption and preservation because it does not store very well. Spring is stored for a long time, the harvest is harvested in early autumn.
How to properly grow garlic in open ground
Rules for growing garlic in open ground:
- The crop should not be sown deeply so that the garlic does not begin to rot in the moisture accumulated underground.
- Garlic is grown in areas that are well lit.
- Before planting, apply natural or synthetic fertilizers.
- Only large and healthy material without visible damage is suitable for planting.
- The bed with winter garlic is mulched and covered with brushwood to retain snow.
- The soil is prepared approximately 10-14 days before the intended planting. If you sow garlic in a freshly dug bed, then as the soil shrinks, the crop will deepen, which will prevent its timely germination.
- Sow in one place no more than 2-3 times in a row.
Preparation of planting material
The main planting material is cloves of all varieties. To obtain a large harvest, they must be properly prepared.
The cloves are carefully selected. Double, small and cracked ones should be disposed of.
The cloves are kept in a solution of wood ash for a couple of hours (half a bucket of water per 1 kg of substance). Before use, the solution must be boiled and then cooled.
Arrows with aerial bulbs are thoroughly dried and the largest seeds are selected for planting.
Soil preparation and crop rotation
The soil for sowing must be fertile, moisture-absorbing and drained. An excellent option is loam. The main thing is that the soil should not be dry. Shaded areas under tall trees or bushes are not suitable for planting.
14 days before sowing, dig up the bed and fertilize it. For this you will need 2 tbsp. l.potassium salt and superphosphate, as well as a bucket of humus. This amount of fertilizer is enough for 1 square. m beds.
Predecessors of garlic in the garden
Garlic grows well in place of potatoes, cucumbers and zucchini, as well as legumes. You should not plant it after the onion, as the harvest will be of poor quality. Similarly, you should not grow it after carrots and tomatoes.
The culture feels good next to raspberries, strawberries, currants or roses. An additional plus is that garlic repels pests of these plants.
Methods and timing of planting garlic
The winter variety is planted with both whole heads and cloves.
When planting, the slices are cleaned of dry scales and soaked in a growth-stimulating solution for 7-9 hours. Planting with heads will require clearing the bottom of the garlic from old roots. After this, the heads or slices are placed in a soft, wet cloth and then in a plastic bag. Wrap it so that there is a hole for fresh air to enter. Store in a cool place and do not allow the fabric to dry.
Garlic for planting in spring is prepared 1 month in advance, during which time roots up to 5 cm long will appear on the cloves. There is no specific time for planting in spring. And if they are planted in the fall, they do it 40 days before the onset of frost (times vary in different regions).
Spring garlic is prepared several days before planting. The heads are separated into cloves and cleaned of dry scales. The outer teeth are suitable for planting. They are kept for 2 hours in a weak solution of potassium permanganate, then wrapped in a damp cloth and placed in a bag. Keep for two days in the cellar or on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.
How to water garlic
Garlic is a garden crop that is considered one of the most moisture-loving.If it lacks moisture, the garlic arrows change their color to bluish-white. Due to lack of moisture, the quality of the heads will decrease.
In the initial stage of the growing season, use 10 liters of water per 2 m². As the garlic ripens, reduce the amount of water. With the onset of August, watering can be stopped altogether.
After watering, the soil is loosened, weeded and mulched. Thanks to mulch, it will be possible to retain moisture longer and additionally saturate the soil with nutrients. For this purpose, use hay or sawdust.
Winter and spring varieties can be watered together with fertilizer. For this, liquid solutions are used. During the season, 4 such waterings are done. As soon as the sprouts appear, perform first feeding regular mullein or urea (20 g per 10 liters of water).
The second time nitrogen fertilizers are used, they are applied after 2 weeks. During the formation of the heads, the garlic is watered with a solution containing superphosphate. This procedure is repeated at intervals of 14 days.
Garlic is a sensitive crop in terms of watering. If there is little moisture, plants wither, development and growth slow down. But this does not mean that garlic needs to be filled with water every day.
Attention! High humidity can cause garlic to rot.
Harvesting and storing garlic harvest
The most intensive growth of the head occurs at the beginning of drying of the lower leaves. To harvest a rich harvest, the exact time is determined, after which the garlic is collected for storage.
If harvested early, the garlic will ripen on its own, but the bulb will not grow to its maximum size - there is a risk of losing up to 15% of the harvest. When harvested late, the garlic becomes overripe. The husk flakes off, and the cloves fall out of the head, dry out and deteriorate.
The harvest date is determined by the appearance of the plant:
- Shooting varieties are harvested after the upper leaves have withered and the outer shells of the garlic head have dried.
- Those who do not shoot remove the false stems as soon as they fall.
How to prepare garlic for storage: cut the tops 2-3 cm from the edge of the head, remove the roots, leaving 3-5 mm near the bottom. Dry outdoors. Then collect them in buns or braids and store them.
Store garlic in the attic or on the upper steps of the cellar.
Fertilization and pest control
Garlic bushes are attacked by pests, among which the most common are centipedes, onion flies, nematodes and moths. To control pests, the seed beds are sprayed with biological insecticides (“Aktofit”, “Cesar”, “Gaupsin”, “Bizar”, etc.) during the period of appearance of butterflies and caterpillars.
Compliance with crop rotation and proper agricultural technology is also of great importance. Grow garlic in the same place for no more than 3 years in a row. Destroy plant debris. Loosen and feed with mineral fertilizers in a timely manner.
Common garlic diseases and ways to combat them
Spring and winter garlic are susceptible to the same diseases, which are difficult to distinguish without some experience. There are many diseases that can affect a plant.
Frequently encountered:
- mosaic;
- aspergillosis;
- yellow dwarfism;
- rust;
- peronosporosis;
- Fusarium
The main measure to combat viral diseases of garlic is treatment with biological fungicides (Gaupsin, Fitosporin, Mikosan, Pentafag, Baikal Em1).
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Nuances of care in autumn, winter, spring and summer
Garlic, although unpretentious, like any vegetable, requires constant care during cultivation. Proper care for it accelerates growth and improves productivity.
The soil must be moistened periodically to prevent the bushes from drying out. Water every 3-4 days. If the weather remains cloudy outside for a long time, reduce the amount of watering to once a week.
After watering, the soil is loosened, as the ground becomes covered with a dense crust. If you do not get rid of it, the supply of oxygen and moisture to the roots will deteriorate.
The soil is loosened for the first time 15 days after planting the seedlings. Subsequent weeding is carried out after 10 days. During loosening, all weeds are removed, as they reduce soil fertility.
Growing Tips
How to grow garlic in the garden? Secrets of a strong and healthy harvest:
- As soon as garlic leaves appear from the ground, the planting is fed with nitrogen fertilizer. To do this, dissolve 1 tbsp in 10 liters of water. l. urea, 10 l per 2 sq. m.
- When the leaves grow to 10-15 cm, the soil is raked away from the bulb, covered with ash and the soil is returned to its place. This operation is carried out when arrows appear.
- When removing the garlic arrows, leave a few pieces behind. They determine the harvest date. As soon as the shell on the heads cracks and the bulbs begin to peek out, it’s time to harvest the garlic.
Where to start a garlic business
The first year will require significant investment, but if you do everything right, in 12 months the business will pay off.
Required:
- paperwork;
- renting land for cultivation;
- purchase or rental of special equipment;
- hiring workers;
- raw materials;
- sales points.
In the following years, profits will increase, since there will no longer be such costs as in the first year.
Advantages and disadvantages
Growing garlic for sale is considered a profitable business. If you do not deviate from agricultural technology, then in any case you will find profit.
Advantages of garlic business:
- The vegetable is stored for a long time. If storage conditions are properly provided, it can be sold according to demand, in small quantities.
- The popularity of garlic. It is in demand all year round, so there are always ways to sell it.
- Garlic grows in any soil, as it is an unpretentious crop. The main thing is to strictly adhere to technology.
- You can start a garlic growing business with a small summer cottage in order to master all the basics and pitfalls and not make large investments right away.
Disadvantages of growing crops:
- Growing on a large scale requires considerable additional costs for special equipment and hiring workers.
- Under unfavorable climatic conditions, the crop may die, so the process must be carefully monitored.
- You cannot grow garlic on the same plantation for more than 3 years in a row. This leads to soil depletion and, as a consequence, crop degeneration.
Profitability of business from 1 hundred square meters and 1 hectare
The calculation of profitability depends on the size of the acreage; income is calculated in the same way. If agricultural technologies are followed, 130 kg of crop is obtained from 1 hectare, therefore, from 1 hectare of land - about 13 tons.
RUB 3,000 will be spent on plowing, harrowing, and preparing the soil directly for planting on 10 acres. The cost of planting material will be approximately 10,000 rubles, since at least 100 kg will be needed to sow an area of 10 acres (at a cost of seed material of 100 rubles per 1 kg). To fertilize the soil, you will need 4 tons of peat or humus. All this requires 17,000 rubles.Consequently, 1 hectare will require 100 times more costs.
From 1 hectare you get from 10 to 50 tons of harvest, depending on the type of garlic. If we take into account that 1 kg is sold for 100 rubles, then the income will be 1 million rubles. In the best case scenario, this amount increases up to 5 times.
Based on the presented calculations, we can conclude that if everything is done correctly, the business will pay for itself in the first year of existence.
Conclusion
Garlic is not only a healthy product, but also a promising vegetable for making monetary profits. Choose the method you like, or better yet several, so you can compare the results and grow a huge harvest.