How Much Garlic Does One Clove Produce in the Garden?

So, you’ve determined to develop garlic in your backyard. This historic crop is a superb backyard addition for thus many causes: It’s low-maintenance, winter-hardy, and high-yielding. However how a lot garlic are you able to harvest from one clove? And the way a lot will it’s essential plant for a ample provide?

If that is your first time rising this vegetable, you’re in all probability understanding how a lot it’s essential develop to satisfy your loved ones’s wants. Let’s determine how a lot garlic every clove will produce and easy methods to plan your crop accordingly.

The Quick Reply

One clove will produce one bulb of garlic, which may have 4 to twenty cloves, relying on the cultivar. The scale, weight, and variety of cloves is decided by the sort and selection you select. For instance, one clove of ‘Chesnok Purple‘ yields one massive garlic bulb with at the very least 9 to 10 massive cloves. In distinction, one ‘Ichelium Purple‘ softneck plant produces one bulb with 10 to twenty smaller cloves organized in layers.

The quantity of garlic seeds you need to develop largely relies on the selection and your rising circumstances. Hardnecks are finest for northern areas, whereas softnecks are normally grown within the South. If you wish to develop hardnecks in a hotter local weather, it’s essential refrigerate them earlier than planting.

The Lengthy Reply

There may be each a easy and a fancy reply to this query. Let’s discuss first about what number of bulbs you’ll get from a clove, after which what which means by way of how a lot garlic that equates to. 

One Clove, One Bulb

The straightforward reply is that one clove or seed will produce one complete garlic bulb. Nevertheless, not each bulb is equal by way of measurement, weight, and high quality. It’s necessary to know easy methods to finest care to your crop to maximise the vigor and high quality.

This bulbous root vegetable grows finest in wealthy, unfastened soil with glorious drainage. Soil that’s too dense will compact and inhibit progress. Poor drainage and soggy soil could cause them to rot. Soaking your seeds in water with diluted apple cider vinegar or peroxide earlier than planting will help kill off any undesirable pathogens they could possibly be harboring. 

In case your soil is poor or sandy, ensure that to amend it with loads of compost or manure. House your seeds about six to eight inches aside in holes which are two to 4 inches deep. It’s necessary to put them with the pointed finish going through upward, as that is the place the inexperienced half sprouts. That’s how they’ll get daylight. 

Discover a location that receives full solar for at the very least six hours per day. Water them effectively after planting and if you happen to stay in a cooler local weather, you should definitely add a layer of mulch or straw on prime. This protects them from chilly, suppresses weeds, and retains moisture within the soil. 

Hardneck vs. Softneck

One other aspect of ‘how a lot’ is the weight or mass of your remaining merchandise, in distinction to the variety of bulbs. Whereas it’s true that one seed will develop one bulb, the dimensions of the ultimate harvest can range broadly. The care you give makes a distinction, however not as a lot as the variability you select.

There are two varieties of garlic: hardneck and softneck. Inside these two, there are ten completely different sub-types differentiated by their DNA composition and backyard efficiency.

Hardneck varieties have bigger bulbs and cloves. There can be fewer cloves per bulb, however normally, extra mass and extra weight, so extra garlic altogether. Hardneck sorts don’t develop as effectively in hotter climates, in order that’s a consideration to make when selecting. These additionally are usually essentially the most flavorful and common within the culinary world. 

Softneck varieties are smaller in all methods. There can be extra cloves per bulb, however they are going to be smaller, with tighter skins, so it’s extra work to peel them. The taste is milder for many who want a much less potent taste. They’re simpler to develop in heat climates, they usually additionally retailer higher and longer. 

How A lot Ought to You Plant?

It’s tough to present an across-the-board reply to this query as a result of all of us have completely different garlic wants. There are many opinions on the market, and one of many extra widespread is that you need to plant 15 cloves, per particular person, in your family. If every clove yields one massive bulb, you’ll have 15 full bulbs of garlic.

Keep in mind that not all varieties are the similar measurement. One pound of hardneck equates to about eight bulbs, or 35-50 cloves. One pound of softneck is nearer to 50-70 cloves. 

One other issue to contemplate is how a lot you wish to have leftover to plant for the following yr. Be sure to order a sure variety of bulbs to put aside to make use of as seed. In the event you plant 15 cloves per particular person, that’s 60 cloves, and in the end, 60 bulbs for a household of 4. To have sufficient left over to plant the identical quantity subsequent yr, you’ll wish to plant a further 15-20 seeds, relying on the variability. 

In the event you’re undecided how a lot you’ll use, it’s good to err on the excessive aspect. You’ll be able to all the time share if you find yourself with greater than you want. An additional productive backyard makes good neighbors. Resolve what number of bulbs you want per particular person in your loved ones. Then, plant as if there’s one extra particular person to have lots put aside for subsequent yr. 

How Lengthy Does it Take?

When you’ve planted, it’s time to settle in for the lengthy haul. This crop has a surprisingly lengthy rising season, however you don’t have to do a lot throughout this time. Your local weather will affect the time of yr you plant and have some impact on the size of the season. Nevertheless, as a normal rule, it takes between eight and ten months for cloves to mature into bulbs. 

In the event you plant within the fall, you ought to be prepared to reap mid-summer. You then’ll have to retailer your additional bulbs for just a few months, to plant once more within the fall. A number of the components that affect the vigor and progress fee embrace the fertility of the soil, the temperature throughout every a part of the method, and the quantity of daylight your crops obtain.

You’ll comprehend it’s time to reap when the primary two or three leaves flip brown.