Grabbing garlic

Fresh picked garlic starting to dry

Although this might be giving away a little bit of future CSA shares - that's OK.  Last fall, before we had fully decided on going the CSA route this year for produce production, we decided to make our garlic plantings smaller than in the past - but to try several new varieties.  We ended up with 5 different ones  and the very first - NY White - came out of the ground Sunday.

It's not THAT exciting to many people - but to us it's a clear indication that the season is well underway and it's time to start thinking about fall crops already.  Sure, we have plenty of hot days ahead (yea - the hotter and more humid it is - the happier Andy is) but it still means we are somewhere around the half way mark for the summer growing season.  And that means more seeds to be started for yummy cool weather crops.

Once we get all the garlic pulled we will make a decision on which ones we like the best...  which is painful the first year...  because that means less in the root cellar because the cloves that just came out of the ground this year are what we plant in October to become the full bulbs of next summer.

With that thought - here's a great sustainability tip:  One of the coolest things with garlic though, for anyone growing it...  it's really one of the most sustainable vegetables you can grow.  From a single clove you get a bulb of many cloves after one year...  from that bulb you get many bulbs - and it can all be raised from that single clove you started with - year after year.  It takes very little maintenance in the garden (weeding is about all) and it's a staple spice for all sorts of great dishes.  Even better - it stores well and is easy to dry and turn into your very own powder.  Go garlic!