More Thoughts While Weeding: Garlic harvest time

Word gets around. Starting in mid-July, whether by text or phone call, local garlic growers check in with one another. “Have you pulled your crop?” is the key question. “Do you think it’s ready?”

After a week of waffling, my answer is an indisputable yes. Last Saturday, pulling a few heads, the bulb wrappers looked right, but the individual clove sheaths were still too thick. It is always a puzzle, figuring out when to harvest. Twenty years ago when I started growing garlic in quantity, typically that meant early August, but as our growing zone shifts, now it is more often the last week in July. Ultimately the trick is to harvest before the heads begin to split.