Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest

Can you share your experience or provide me with any sources of info.

Thank you

Toby

My experience is that garlic doesn't like it dry. It needs water to
produce a good sized bulb. If you are farming a dry area with limited
water availability you might consider drip lines with your garlic to
minimize water useage.

Get 'Growing Great Garlic' by Ron Engelund. Excellent book!

-frank
--

I bet that the smaller heads you get keep better.

Yeah, but it doesnt tell you how to dry farm garlic.

not really. Anyone who grows garlic knows enough to stop watering two
weeks from harvest. If, like in my case, the garlic is interplanted
with lettuce or chicory, that will help dry the ground further. The
smaller heads will just be smaller.

I guess that youre too sophisticated for us.

I have done it for years here in northwest California, and it is very
possible. In fact, there is no need to irrigate garlic at all in our
climate because the time the Garlic needs water is during our rainy
season, and the time the bulbs are drying down, June-July are
ordinarily completely dry. I plant in October (I better get on it!)
and harvest in July. The only problem I have are gophers, which must
be trapped vigilantly if you got 'em. I hope this helps.
Dan

How much precipitation do you get? Do you deep plough, or cultivate to
retain soil moisture?

I get 40-50 inches of rain in an average year, and I have never had to
do anything to retain soil moisture at all, although cultivation is an
excellent strategy which I've used on summer crops. I don't deep
cultivate because I have a deep sandy loam which garlic and gophers
both seem to love.

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1 24th April 12:01 damnhardtofind External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest Can you share your experience or provide me with any sources of info. Thank you Toby

2 24th April 12:01 dps External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest (water) My experience is that garlic doesn't like it dry. It needs water to produce a good sized bulb. If you are farming a dry area with limited water availability you might consider drip lines with your garlic to minimize water useage.

3 24th April 12:02 fpm External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest Get 'Growing Great Garlic' by Ron Engelund. Excellent book! -frank --

4 24th April 23:30 damnhardtofind External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest I bet that the smaller heads you get keep better.

5 24th April 23:30 damnhardtofind External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest Yeah, but it doesnt tell you how to dry farm garlic.

6 25th April 05:39 simy1 External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest (watering) not really. Anyone who grows garlic knows enough to stop watering two weeks from harvest. If, like in my case, the garlic is interplanted with lettuce or chicory, that will help dry the ground further. The smaller heads will just be smaller.

7 25th April 17:48 damnhardtofind External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest I guess that youre too sophisticated for us.

9 26th April 11:42 damnhardtofind External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest How much precipitation do you get? Do you deep plough, or cultivate to retain soil moisture?

10 26th April 17:34 potatoz External User Posts: 1	Dry farming garlic in Pacific Northwest (have) I get 40-50 inches of rain in an average year, and I have never had to do anything to retain soil moisture at all, although cultivation is an excellent strategy which I've used on summer crops. I don't deep cultivate because I have a deep sandy loam which garlic and gophers both seem to love.