<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n13. Harvesting Garlic<\/h3>\n\n\n\n Harvest from your autumn or early winter plantings will most probably be ready in late July to August. In warmer climates in the southern hemisphere, harvest dates depend on the planting date. Typically, garlic takes nine months to mature, and you need to get it in the ground and rooted before the soil freezes. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
When it\u2019s close to harvest time, check your plants daily for signs of yellowing in the leaves. When they start to turn color and fall over, it\u2019s time to pull the bulbs. Start your harvest with a sample, don\u2019t rush into pulling everything up if you are not entirely satisfied they are ready yet. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Pull a bulb out of the earth, if the head divides into cloves and the skin is dry, thick, with a papery texture, and crumbles easily. You know the bulbs have been in the ground too long if they start to split apart from each other. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n
14. Storing and Curing Garlic Bulbs<\/h3>\n\n\n\n After pulling your bulbs, it\u2019s time to prepare for processing or storing the garlic. We like to keep a few bulbs available for cooking in the kitchens vegetable drawer, and we send the rest to the root cellar to cure and remain ready for cooking at a moment\u2019s notice. Before we toss the bulbs in the root cellar, we throw them into a burlap sack to allow the garlic to breathe as it cures. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Leave freshly pull garlic bulbs to mature for a week before you use it for cooking. When the crown feels hard, and you can easily crack away from the cloves, the garlic is ready for addition to your meals. You can mice a whole clove and leave it in an air-tight container in the fridge for up to 5-days before it starts to turn.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Make sure your root cellar reaches a maximum temperature of 40F to maintain your garlic in the ideal curing conditions. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\r\n