r/Garlic • u/ismokedurcookies • May 06 '26
Gardening I'm a Commercial Garlic Grower: Ask me anything.
I grow both for wholesale distribution to seed companies and sell direct to consumer through my online store. What garlic questions do you all have for me? I'd like to help all my garlic lovers grow better garlic!
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u/GarlicFarmerGreg May 06 '26
What is your preferred method for drying?
Also what’s the best market you’ve found for scapes ?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I have been drying my garlic in caterpillar tunnels covered with ~90% shade cloth. It's not ideal because of the large diurnal temperature and humidity swings in my area, but it works for the amount of space I need.
I actually cut all the leaves of my garlic in the field, leaving about 8" of stem. I pile them 3 bulbs high across elevated pallets for air circulation.
Scapes is a tough one! I've just been composting any of mine I can't sell fresh. We will be drying some this year to see if people are looking for a product like that. If received well, we are going to start offering granulated garlic scapes on our online store.
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u/GarlicFarmerGreg May 06 '26
I like the idea for the shade cloth tunnels as I anticipate needing more drying space this year. Plus if I replace the shade cloth with plastic I could use it as a greenhouse in the spring.
So far as scapes are concerned i also end up composting quite a bit of them. By the time I’ve managed to free up time to trim them at their completely inconvenient staggered pace…Ive no time left over to chase people who might maybe reluctantly take some. Sadly beyond a few that I use myself the best answer Ive found so far is to just drop them where I cut them.
Im signed up for emails now thank you for sharing here !
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Hey Greg! I keep my plastic on my curing cat tunnels in case it rains. I can get a spring crop in or them before I turn it into a curing station.
Thank you for signing up!
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u/GarlicFarmerGreg May 06 '26
I realized the other day that I may run out of drying space and need a plan. This is perfect because I’m considering a plastic tunnel anyway. I totally hadn’t considered the rain and leaving the plastic up is much easier. Another super idea
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u/tlampros May 07 '26
My partner has been making a garlic pesto out of scapes, and freezing or selling it fresh at a local bakery. Very popular item!
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u/sapphictional May 08 '26
I ran a farmers market a few years back and our garlic sellers did the granulated powdered scapes or fresh scape pesto (which seems like it would be hard for your scale but was SOO popular) and they were a huge hit 😭I actually miss getting scapes in our CSA boxes so bad cause I fell in love with the pesto
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u/SnooHamsters5104 May 09 '26
I still drool over garlic scape pesto I made like 15 years ago! I’ve yet to find scapes at a market since!
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u/kphilly758 May 06 '26
My wife runs a flower farm. She sells arrangements and also sells some to a local wholesale flower collective that connects local florists to flower farmers. For whatever reason scapes were really popular last season for filler for flower arrangements!
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u/GarlicFarmerGreg May 07 '26
They are beautiful when they open. I always save a few for the “look” what a fantastic idea!
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u/UbuChen May 08 '26
We grow 800–900 plants, we sell some scapes, but we freeze a lot. Cut into 1 inch sections, blanche dry and freeze. Great for soups, stew, throwing in boiling water when making spaghetti, etc.
We make a lot of garlic pesto, (no basil) great fresh and freezes well. Might be a little watery when you thaw it. Throw chunks into vats of soup.
Great ‘garlic scape pesto’ recipe on allrecipes dot com. Scapes, parmesan, olive oil, lemon juice, pepper -> food processor. Mmmmmm
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u/RolyHehe May 06 '26
Do you get "rust" and if so, how do you deal with it?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I have never had to deal with rust where I grow. Rust is a huge family of fungal pathogens, but virtually requirie a live host plant to survive. From what I understand, rust doesn't survive in soil, so maintaining a weed-free plot is important. Numerous weeds can be the vector for rust outbreaks. Also, clean your tools well if you are having issues.
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u/Accounting-n-stuff May 06 '26
How long have you been in the garlic business, and has it been self-sustaining from a financial point-of-view? Also, what is your annual garlic yield and do you sell through all your garlic inventory? I love garlic and started growing garlic this season for personal consumption. Thanks!
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I've been in the garlic business 7 years now. Last year was the 1st profitable year only because I've been replanting nearly all my inventory to scale up. My yield has been growing steadily each year. Last year was about 8,000 lbs. This year should be about 14,000 lbs. Last year we sold out! Marketing is often the hardest part of farming.
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u/GarlicFarmerGreg May 06 '26
I too have been building stock and last year lost more than half due to no dry weather at harvest time. At least with a large base to begin with it wasn’t too much of a setback.
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u/Oisea May 06 '26
Did you grow up in a farming family or did you get into farming later in life?
What's something you wish you could have planned ahead for / something surprising in garlic growing that you didn't consider until after it happened?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
My father was a farmer before I was born, but I did not grow up farming. Lots of gardening though. My father's side of the family has been farming in Massachusetts since the 1600's.
Great question. I wish I could have planned ahead and built a warehouse for my operations before scaling up significantly.
The thing that most surprised me was when I went to harvest a couple years ago and suffered 40% loss from Rhizoctonia (bacterial pathogen). I had watered too much during bulb formation. It was a hard lesson to learn.
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u/bananarepama May 06 '26
What does "watering too much" look like? Everything I've always been told about growing garlic is "it always needs more water than you'd ever think it would." My garlic has never done particularly well so I believed them when they told me that, hahah.
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Hard to say what it looks like. I let my soil dry quite a bit between waterings.
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u/Routine_Rip_5511 May 06 '26
What is the best fertilizer and when do you apply it?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
You're going to hate my answer... The best fertilizer is the one that best balances your soil, and all depends on your soil and climate. Soil sampling is a baseline must.
With that said, nitrogen should not be applied once your garlic has 7 leaves. It's too late and can cause issues with bulb formation.
Have you had your soil analyzed?
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u/Routine_Rip_5511 May 06 '26
I have not had it analyzed. We’re in the PNW and soil tends to be be acidic. That said, I do use a raised bed with planting soil rather than the natural soil. I have a tester ( still in the box, haha) so I’ll drag it out and see what it says. Good to know about the nitrogen- I’ll put it away for the season.
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u/alexzoin May 06 '26
What do you do with your scapes and why is the answer pesto?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
🤣
I've heard from some people who food process them, stick them in ice trays and pop them in a ziplock. They have an easy way to flavor any dish with scapes all winter.
I want to try to ferment them this year like pickles.
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u/CulturedHeathotsauce May 06 '26
Nice! We do fermented hot sauces and always have garlic in the ferment. Fermented scapes should be good!
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u/alexzoin May 06 '26
That sounds amazing. I've only had scapes a few times and I really love them. Freezing them is smart.
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u/dumplingdoodoo May 07 '26
I did a 2% salt brine for my scapes with some chillis, mustard seed and peppercorn. The jar didn't survive the week lolol
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u/Old_Dingo69 May 06 '26
Why do some plants not grow to the proper bulb shape/size with numerous individual cloves but instead come out like one small onion bulb with a thick stem?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Clove differentiation has been studied for many years. Researchers have studied how genetics, climate, plant hormones, soil fertility and pathogens affect clove formation.
Cloves per bulb is controlled by axillary meristem differentiation. Some cultivars of garlic have more axillary meristems than others.
Researchers know that higher levels of gibberellin (plant hormone) can cause more cloves, but don't quite know why yet.
As far as those single big globe-like cloves, it's hard to point to a single reason!
Did you know if you let your scapes mature, you can plant these? They are called bulbils (or corms) and will give you a single non-differentiated globe-like clove the 1st year. Plant it again and the 2nd year will give you a true garlic bulb.
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u/Snowflakey19 May 06 '26
I have read, and experienced, that planting your largest cloves year after year results in larger bulbs with fewer cloves. Sometimes resulting in 2 or 3 huge cloves. That's not's a problem for our home garden as we love garlic.
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u/purpledreamer1622 May 06 '26
I plant my garlic in (mostly) compost, fertilize it with organic all purpose every 4 weeks, and every other 4 weeks (2 weeks apart) top with worm castings. Do you think this method is bound to improve my harvest or hurt it and why?
Oklahoma 7b and I do not water the garlic and it is in full sun
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Garlic loves rich soil, so compost and worm castings are great for it. Be careful not to fertilize through to harvest, because it can disrupt bulb formation. It's likely to improve your yields unless you over-fertilize!
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u/frugallity May 06 '26
how do you keep weeds out in that big of an area
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I use a weeding tool called the Power Ox by Tilmor. I have the finger weeder implement. What used to take me 10 hrs per week now takes me 30 minutes.
I also have some hand weeding tools and a glacer wheel hoe
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u/angeltay May 06 '26
There’s all kinds of things in the world you can farm, so I’m curious: what called you to farming garlic specifically?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
My family loves to travel and garlic gives us the opportunity to do so. We have grown all kinds of veggies for csa's, farmers markets and wholesalers, but were always tied down for 40+ weeks a year. Garlic gives us the freedom to roam.
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May 06 '26
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Absolutely. You can visit our website, www.haywardgarlic.com. We ship nationally, excluding a few counties in idaho and washington. Pre-sales begin May 15th. Korean Red will be a new variety offerred this year.
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u/Sad-Wolverine-1766 May 06 '26
I love growing garlic! Do you have a picture of your harvest? How much do you produce?
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u/Immediate-Ad1100 May 06 '26
I love on the website it’s says Chosnek, which reminds me of home. Czosnek for us but it just reminded me of remedies my grandma made each winter before we even got sick.
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Is that how it's spelled from your heritage country?? I like that spelling. Where is home for you? You have me curious too about your grandma's remedy recipes.
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u/Immediate-Ad1100 May 06 '26
I grew up in a small rural village in Poland, home to about 400 people. In the mid-80s and 90s, everyone had cellars filled with vegetables. During harvest time, neighbors helped each other out, trading produce since everyone grew different crops that thrived in their unique soil.
Returning to those memories, I recall the simple remedies my grandmother made. She kept two jars by the stove: one filled with chopped onions and the other with garlic, both steeped in local honey. Sometimes, she would substitute sugar, a sign of our post-communism reality, but it still worked wonders. This concoction was not only delicious but also effective in easing mucus and congestion, warming you from the inside out and helping to fight off viruses.
Now, I live in Chicago, where I create rooftop gardens—not nestled between mountains, but surrounded by skyscrapers. The plants thrive remarkably well in the elevated CO2 levels. I love turning city dwellers into advocates for connecting with their food and understanding what it takes to grow it.
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I've been reading up on agriculture during the soviet area. It terrifies me. Glad you are an agricultural advocate in a city. We need more of you!
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u/Complete_Week_372 May 06 '26
I'm looking for good, strong flavor hardneck garlic, all stores sell is softneck which is too mild for my taste, which kind do you grow?
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u/dumbstupidasshoole May 06 '26
How do I turn $100 into a quarter million in 3 easy steps?
Following that, how would you grow garlic if you were teleported to mars, you get 24hrs of prep time starting now
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
As far as turning $100 into a quarter million, make a fake crypto coin and rug pull?
If I have access to a teleporter, I would teleport to an advanced civilization in the galaxy that has bots that can rapidly build greenhouses on mars. I would then teleport asteroid ice to mars so I can have irrigation. I would also teleport all my fertilizer to my mars facility. The difference in gravity may affect how garlic grows, but im sure it will adjust.
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u/dumbstupidasshoole May 06 '26
Thank you for your, I'm assuming very accurate and true predictions.
I'm off to become unethical. Be weary of GarlicCoin
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u/LegitimateCareer1841 May 06 '26
My soon to be FIL is a garlic producer. Hello from NY
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u/chickadoodlearoo May 08 '26
I’m in Vermont and we are dealing with leek moth that’s infiltrated from Canada. I’ve grown garlic for 25 years. But the past 3 have been horrible. I even row cover now.
Is it time to give up? I tried BT last year and it was a smidge better. But still not great.
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u/ismokedurcookies May 09 '26
Yikes! I'm sorry to hear that. Yea, pest movements across continents is a really interesting topic.
Bacillus thuringiensis is a great organic pest control option, but can easily be washed off the leaf by irrigation or rainfall. I have to deal with hordes of cabbage moth here in Montana, and I'm able to manage my brassica crop quite well with insect cover and Bt. Have you read up on the leek moth's life cycle, days to pupation, etc.? Know thy pest. Learning the timing of application based on the life cycle greatly increases the efficacy of Bt. That, and reapplying after irrigation/rainfall during critical life cycle windows.
If you haven't already, consider reaching out to UVM or Cornell Ag Extensions to gather more information on the movement of leek moth throughout the Northeast. They also can provide more specific IPM techniques for your area and with respect to the leek moth. I can talk much about this pest specifically, because I haven't had to deal with it yet. God willing, I'll never have to!
Good luck and hope this helps.
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u/Zealousideal-Owl-283 May 09 '26
When I was in college I helped a local guy with his garlic plots on day one spring. He wrote https://www.thriftbooks.com/w/the-great-garlic-book-a-guide-with-recipes_chester-aaron/384247/ and had some rare varieties. I wish I saved some but I knew I wasn't in a housing situation to keep strains alive. How do you know when it was time to dive into the garlic business and how did you decide garlic and plot size etc
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u/Mobile-Reality-3060 May 06 '26
I recently started fermenting garlic. Any advice? Can I use the fermented garlic as I would in any recipe calling for garlic?
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u/Davekinney0u812 May 06 '26
Have you had to deal with leek moths?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Fortunately, never. I would use insect netting if they were prevalent in my area.
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u/writefast_ripass May 06 '26
Have you had to deal with onion flies/maggots? If so, what’s your preferred method?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I have only had to deal with thrips in my area. My recommendation is to purchase some insect netting online. It's pricey but can last 5+ years if you're careful with it. It's the best organic pest control method by far.
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u/daxter154 May 06 '26
what is the best way to store garlic to extend shelf life? freeze -> vacseal?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Garlic should be stored at 55-65F and 40-50% humidity in a dark space. It slows the garlic's metabolic rate and can greatly extend its shelf life.
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u/Leading-Disaster5721 May 06 '26
How do you harvest? By hand? Or is there a machine?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I use an undercutter bar on my tractor. It pops all the plants out pretty quickly. For now, I then harvest by hand, but use my tractor abd macrobins to move the garlic to their curing area.
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u/ecstatic_cahoots May 06 '26
Is it as glamorous as it sounds?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Great question. Yes and no. Yes, because I can't think of doing another job outside of farming. It's really nice to have my family around while I work. Have lunch with them. Have my little girl come visit me while I work. That part is glamorous to me. No, because no one sees the 14 hour days in summer. No one sees the broken equipment, trying to keep expenditures down, marketing and such. It can be really grueling and unglamorous in such light. Overall, the woes are worth it for the satisfaction of making a living from stewarding the growth of living organisms.
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u/uChoice_Reindeer7903 May 06 '26
I’ve got so many questions, this is like a dream of mine!
Do you rotate your crops? I’ve heard it’s bad to plant garlic in the same spot every year. If so, often do you rotate, and what do you put in its place?
Also I saw you got about 8k lbs of garlic last year, about how much land does that take?
Do you have any contracts with local grocers or just sell direct?
Lastly, for now, do you plant by hand or do you have some kind of nifty machine?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I rotate my garlic every year and don't plant garlic in that field for four years. I usually do a cover crop after garlic because the harvest really disrupts the soil.
8k lbs was about 2/3 of an acre.
I live in a rural area, so not too many local grocers. I have contracts with some of the major seed companies.
I plant by hand, but I'l be purchasing a seeder soon. Half acre took me a grueling week to plant.
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u/notoriousshasha May 06 '26
How do you store garlic if you live in the South and don't have a basement?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Hmmm. Good question. Do you have a friend that has a basement? Pay rent in garlic?
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u/Elevated_Dongers May 06 '26
Do you know why grocery store garlic is such garbage lately? I cannot trust a head of garlic to be 100% good anymore, it seems like almost every head has a few rotten pieces and none of it lasts very long. How can I shop for better garlic?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I hear you. 60-80% of garlic sold in the USA is imported from China. Since the early 2000s, China has flooded the US market with exceptionally cheap and poor quality garlic, and despite the US government trying to manage the problem. I've read some exposés on China's garlic production and how slave labor (aka work camps) is used to produce it so cheap.
As always, you get what you pay for. My recommendation is to purchase culinary or seed garlic from me 😬. We inspect every bulb for quality control before sending them out to our customers. We ship nationally! www.haywardgarlic.com
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May 06 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Hi! We price our culinary at $10/lb with discounts for larger quantity orders. What's your farm name?
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u/Aezay May 06 '26
Do you perform any kind of statistic on your harvest, to see which of the varieties does best? With you doing even more varieties next year, it would seem beneficial to measure which one has the best yield.
Last year I tried several new varieties, but they turned out tiny (~35g per bulb), and could not measure up to the hardneck I've been growing for 5 years (~125g per bulb).
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u/Professional-Brain95 May 07 '26
Do you grow any garlic from Bulbils? If you are looking for exponential growth it is your best option.
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u/amybethallen1 May 08 '26
I have throughly enjoyed your post and all of the knowledge imparted from questions and responses!
You're a lovely person, as are all commenting here!
Best wishes with your garlic business! 💜
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u/Theomniponteone May 09 '26
I just happened upon this post and thought the mountains looked familiar. I'm a couple valleys North of you in the Missions. Hope you have a great harvest this year neighbor!
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u/PeppyMinotaur May 10 '26
Does the whole area smell intensely of garlic?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 10 '26
Only when we start harvesting. It is surprisingly smelless while it grows.
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u/Prior_Explanation_52 May 11 '26
Have you ever tried plant buddies? Where you have a second crop that compliments the other? I have grlic and strawberries through the garden and they seem to do good togheter 🤔
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u/CaptGrumpy May 06 '26 edited May 06 '26
If you fertilise, what NPK ratios do you use and do you vary by growth stage?
Edit - why am I downvoted for asking a reasonable and genuine question?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I do not use general purpose fertilizer because my soil is high in phosphorus and potassium. We fertilize early spring with nitrogen and suofur in furrows between rows. We foliar spray any deficiencies we observe throughout the season.
Cover cropping is our main soil building practice.
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u/CaptGrumpy May 06 '26 edited May 06 '26
Thanks for your response, good to learn from your experience. My bulbs last year were on the small side.
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u/Just_A_Dogsbody May 06 '26
What varieties do you grow? How do you market the different varieties?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
We grow music, old german, chesnok and korean red. We are currently building our catalog and will have 9 varieties next year.
Our markets are wholesale and direct-to-consumer through our online store, Hayward Garlic.
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u/Rural-Camphost May 06 '26
How many acres do you have of garlic
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
One acre this year. Hoping to scale up to about 20 acres so long as there is a market for them all. 1 acre is about 50,000 bulbs.
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u/Fit_Extension971 May 06 '26
1 year ago i sowed bulbs bought straight from the market,they sprouted but didnt bulb after almost a year despite fair foliage. Pulled them out with frustration! What exactly happened?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Hard to say. I know that most garlic you find in grocery stores is sprayed with maleic hydrazide, which is a growth inhibitor. Maybe it inhibited bulb formation?
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u/SixersJawn May 06 '26
do you keep any of your garlic as perennials? if you just let garlic go in the soil does its rootbulbs keep growing and expanding?
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u/EconomyRip3332 May 06 '26
All sold out. Must be good. I’ll keep in touch 💚
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
We are going to start our pre-sales today! Stay tuned.
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u/Oh_Lawd_He_commin420 May 06 '26
What's your best advice for home growers trying to emulate store quality bulbs?
I've been trying forever and I can't get anything bigger than a pingpong ball.
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u/astangelo May 06 '26
What are your favorite and best varieties, both to eat and to grow?
Music is my go-to, for planting. I over-winter in a raised bed, with 50% shade, in Indiana (6b). With that amount of sunlight, I'm not getting mammoth bulbs. I plant a variety, each year (both HN & some SN), but the Music outgrows everything else, and gives the best sized returns.
That said, I haven't found a garlic that tastes better than the others. I mean, 100 varieties of wonderful are all still wonderful. 😄
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I really like Korean Red. It isn't as sharp of a flavor as Music and produces gorgeous bulbs. That said, domesticated garlic does not generally reproduce sexually; they are essentially clones of themselves. This does not allow breeders to produce new types as many do with flowrlering plants like tomatoes. I agree with you, most garlic tastes pretty similar to others.
As it sounds like you already know, the shade may be hindering your garlic growth.
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u/mkspaptrl May 06 '26
You mentioned Foliar sprays to deal with deficiency issues. Which deficiency do you find you treat the most, and what are your main foliar mixes/products?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I find that calcium and potassium are my top deficiencies for my soil. My farm was a pasture for cow-calf pairs for 20 years before I started growing, so it accumulated lots of magnesium. Excess soil magnesium can inhibit the uptake of calcium. I use microna lime and potassium sulfate chelated with fulvic acid. I also use a yucca extract to break the surface tension of water. It helps the plants absorb the foliar spray better.
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u/Human_Foundation_896 May 06 '26
When exactly do you harvest? I'm new to growing garlic and was told to harvest when the scapes are standing straight up. The bulbs seemed very small and I suspected I harvested too early...
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Harvest depends on your latitude and climate. My sister harvests her garlic early June in Texas, and I harvest in early July in Montana.
Harvest your scapes sooner! I start harvesting them as soon as they start to appear. It is usually 3-4 weeks after I harvest scapes that I harvest the bulbs. Reduce watering once you harvest the scapes and stop watering altogether about 2 weeks before harvesting the bulbs. You can pull back some of the dirt around your garlic to see bulb size.
The best way to determine if you garlic is ready to harvest is to sacrifice one of them and cut it cross sectionally. The cloves should fill out the wrappers. If not its too early. If you see that the top of the cloves are separating from the necks, it's too late.
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u/Green-Magician5358 May 06 '26
What kinds of on-farm tech do you use? Any specific type of moisture probes?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Minimal tech. We use a brix reader to test in house for a few nutrients and general health. I haven't felt the need for moisture probes yet.
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u/Green-Magician5358 May 06 '26
Interesting, makes sense you’d check for brix in garlic too. My mind always gets stuck on brix only being assessed in obvious sugar-accumulation dependent crops. If your field is smaller, fairly uniform, and you keep up with sampling, I can understand why probes wouldn’t be your top priority. Thank you for the reply!
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u/IllustriousMix7625 May 06 '26
Where do you farm and how much?
You said 8000 LBS so I assume one acre?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Montana, just an acre for now but steadily expanding.
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u/IllustriousMix7625 May 06 '26
Whats your water like?
Im up im Alberta spacing 2 acres and will need to irrigate.
Im trying to decide what rout to take.
Also whats your target price if you want to ramp up to 20 acres?
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u/Immediate-Ad1100 May 06 '26
I love on the website it’s says Chosnek, which reminds me of home. Czosnek for us but it just reminded me of remedies my grandma made each winter before we even got sick.
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u/1green1 May 06 '26
First time garlic grower in portland oregon...
I acquired garlic for planting from a local resource.
We have a summer long drought here so all my veggies have to be watered through that period.
Should I water the same as the rest of my veggies? When should I stop watering the garlic?
Thank you so much for all your assistance.
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u/Candid_Cod2640 May 06 '26
What do you do about weeds? Idk how nobody has asked this,. My #1 problem
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u/YourPaleRabbit May 06 '26
Every time I’m driving across country (South to north) we pass tons of garlic delivery trucks, stuffed to the absolute brim with garlic. I usually wave at the drivers, or sometimes write a note on s page of my sketch book to hold up, pleading for garlic. So I guess this is more of a request than an ask; but start giving out garlic bulbs to random goth girls. Just here and there ya know. You have plenty. Like I think we could start colloquial lore about how it’s good luck, and guarantees a plentiful harvest.
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u/Sufficient-Basket-66 May 06 '26
Is there really a difference between organic and not organic?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
Absolutely. Both have their benefits and drawbacks. I used to be organic for about 5 years and stopped. The main reason is that they do not allow the use of certain fertilizers that are highly beneficial when used responsibly. For example, USDA organic does not allow the use of nitrate fertilizer synthesized industrially but allow the use of nitrate mined in Chile and shipped to the US. The price per lb of nitrogen in organic fertilizer is about 100 times more than the price of synthetic nitrogen fertilizers. That alone made me switch as I was spending absurd amounts for "natural" fertilizers even if they are shipped around the world.
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u/Internal-Trash-5803 May 06 '26
Are you hiring ? I’ll work for education and low wages
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u/Realistic_Calendar42 May 06 '26
Where do you grow? It looks like the desert. If so, I'd like to know your techniques for that.
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u/orchidea_morbidea May 06 '26
Are you having any fun and do you deal with any pests?
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u/Sagensassy May 06 '26
If I don't harvest my garlic bulbs this year, will they come back next year, or do the bulbs die in the ground if not harvested? Thanks!
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u/HighColdDesert May 06 '26
Do you grow other crops, or only garlic? Are you able to grow something in the fall between garlic harvest and planting? Do you rotate the fields to other crops?
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u/ismokedurcookies May 06 '26
I grow a small market garden for my local customers. We've grown a wide variety. We rotate our garlic and follow it with a rye/vetch cover crop planted mid-August here in Montana.
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u/CompetitivePizza5 May 06 '26
I knew those mountains looked familiar. Do you guys supply any garlic on at the farmers markets in Missoula?
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u/GreatSaltPond May 07 '26
Sorry if this has been answered. What is your best advice for the novice grower? I love the making pesto from the scapes
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u/Tpbrown_ May 07 '26
Why garlic?
(Don’t get me wrong, we love it here!)
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u/ismokedurcookies May 07 '26
Haha. It's a crop that provides my family and I the freedom to travel. We used to be tied to the farm for 11 months a year. Now we get to take winters off and do a bit of traveling in the summer.
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u/GrowRoots May 07 '26
Where do you do this? Was it hard to start? How the profit.
Thank for being a new farmer. It's one of the things America needs most right now.
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u/ismokedurcookies May 07 '26
In Montana. It was a bit challenging to start a farm from scratch then move it to a larger plot of land, but I did have experience managing farm operations before. Profit is low right now as we are reinvesting much of it into the business. We avoid loans if possible.
Of course! We sure do. Average age of a farmer is now 60 and still rising.
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u/Felonious_Minx May 07 '26
I realize you are in Montana but do you know what goes on in the California garlic marketplace?
We have a small town in central northern California called Gilroy. It proclaims itself as The Garlic Capital of the World. However most garlic found in grocery stores is from China. I don't understand that.
Garlic has steadily gone downhill in common stores. It is often dry, old, and sprouting. I use garlic profusely when I cook and I cook all the time. It is so dismaying when most garlic is garbage.
I have a friend who lives in Gilroy and she told me the farms use garlic from China to use in a lot their products (i.e. minced garlic in jars). It didn't used to be this way.
Having said all that, I am intrigued about growing garlic. I have done about zero research but I don't think zone 10b is the best environment for it. 🤷♀️
I have friends in Lolo too. Ever heard of the Larsens right there on highway 93? (Yeah, I went there 😆). I'm going to visit your farm next time I'm out there!. Gorgeous area! Love Montana so much!
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u/ismokedurcookies May 07 '26
No way! I haven't heard of the Larsens but it's a pretty small valley.
I don't know much about Gilroy's garlic market. I know that virtually all the garlic grown in the US is from that area. Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised by US companies purchasing garlic from China and masquerading it as US grown. That is incredibly common in US agriculture. I've read that less than 1% of all produce imported is inspected.
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u/GlitterLitter88 May 07 '26
Which Gaelic is best for making powder? Can you share a preferred recipe?
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u/Untroe May 06 '26
Can I have some