Grow Garlic in Florida

is it possible to grow garlic in Florida?

In order to grow garlic in Florida, you must grow the soft neck variety. Our weather is much too warm to grow the classic hard neck variety. In Florida, we should plant garlic in late fall (November – January). Some south Florida gardeners have even reported success with growing Creole types of garlic.

In order to grow garlic, there are a few special things that you will need to do; like putting your bulbs in the fridge and choosing the right variety.

Varieties of Garlic That Grow In Florida

Elephant Garlic

Ajo Rojo

Burgundy

Spanish Benitee

Red Torch

Shilla

Bianca Spagnolo

German Red

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What you see in most grocery stores is the hard neck variety of garlic. In Florida, we can grow the soft neck variety which is slightly different.

The “neck ” of the garlic plant is referring to the stalk of the plant. A hard neck variety of garlic will have a hard stalk once dried.Hardneck varieties need cooler weather in order to grow well. Those in north Florida will have the best luck growing hardneck varieties.

Although, Rob Greenfield has reported really good success with growing both hard and soft neck varieties of garlic in central Florida. He also recommended Forever young farms and Sow true seed as sources of garlic bulbs.

Those in South Florida that want to give growing garlic a shot should get the creole varieties. Ajo Rojo, Burgundy, and Spanish Benitee are creole varieties.

Some of the best varieties for North Florida gardeners are Red Torch and Blanco Piacenza.

Preparing Garlic To Plant

In order to prepare your garlic for planting, you need to make the plant think it’s been through a cold winter. We can do this by placing our bulbs in the fridge for 6-8 weeks. It’s best to store them in a brown paper bag during this time.

Planting Garlic In Florida

The best time to plant garlic in Florida is the late fall and early winter, November through January.

When planting garlic plant the bulbs about 4″ apart. if planting multiple rows give them about 6″ of row space.

Plant your garlic bulbs with the pointy end up about 1-2″ deep.

Growing Garlic In Florida

Be sure the spot that you are growing your garlic in gets full sun, 8+ hours.

Garlic needs to stay well-watered. Be sure you water at least water them daily. Especially during this time of year when it is usually pretty dry. Rob greenfield said that he had drip irrigation set up for his garden which he ran twice a day for 10 minutes. He also watered with a hose multiple times a week.

Garlic isn’t too picky about soil conditions. the only thing it won’t stand is waterlogged soil. Make sure that your soil has good air and water flow. If planting directly into your Florida ground be sure to add some compost and extra topsoil to help you out just a bit.

Our dirt is usually made up of a large portion of sand, which is good for water and airflow but a little bit too good. by adding organic matter that helps us hold on to water and nutrients just a little better.

Fertilizing Garlic

Garlic doesn’t need a whole lot of nitrogen. In fact, if given too much nitrogen it will produce nice green leafy growth but small, weak bulbs.

A good fertilizer for garlic is something like this cactus fertilizer, it’s a 2-7-7 fertilizer.

Harvesting Garlic

Garlic usually takes between 100 to 120 days to be ready for harvest. If planted in late fall to early winter you will be ready for harvest around April.

You will know garlic is ready for harvest when most of the leaves have turned brown, all except the top little bunch.

After harvesting you can eat your garlic right away or you can lay it out to dry. in order to dry your garlic, you can lay it on a rack spread out so that all the bulbs get good airflow. Or you can tie your garlic in a bunch and hang it somewhere that is cool and dry. The curing process usually takes a few weeks (2-4 weeks) depending on the size of your garlic bulb.

You will know your garlic is completely dry when the outer skin feels dry and peely and also appears slightly shrunk.

Common Garlic Problems and Pests

The most common problems when growing garlic is rot, Thrips, and nematodes.

The most problematic disease the garlic industry sees as a whole is white rot. It might not be that big of a deal on a small back yard scale but the best way to control it is by removing infected plants as soon as you can. Diseases plants show major signs of wilting.

Nematodes are a problem in Florida for a lot of plants. NEmatodes are hard to control if they are already living in your soil. The best way to fight them is to plant in fresh soil, like a raised bed or something similar.

Thrips are small bugs that come through in large numbers and eat the leaves of your plants.

How To Grow Garlic In Florida

• Plant in the late fall and early winter, November through January.
• Plant Florida friendly varieties of garlic like Ajo Rojo, Red Torch, and Shilla.
• Trick your garlic into thinking winter has come and gone by placing it in a paper bag in your fridge for 6-8 weeks.
• Plant in full sun and well-draining soil.
• Give each bulb about 4-6″ of space all the way around.
• Water regularly
• Fertilize with something like a 2-7-7
• Harvest after 100-120 days

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