Maturity dates are usually a reasonably good guide to harvest time. Your fall-planted garlic is going to start growing when spring starts. (I planted them between 60 and 90 days ago -- not quite sure when I put them in.) A good rule of thumb is to harvest your garlic when the bottom three leaves on most plants have turned brown. Zones 7-8: Sow sets for summer in around February. If you have heavy clay soil, it can be better to plant garlic in spring. It begins to bulb when the day’s length is about 14 hours long. Garlic. Softneck varieties are required if you plan to braid y… Poor drying conditions may cause mould to develop, just discard any mouldy bulbs. No matter how small the cloves grow, you will most always have something to harvest. Avoid those from the supermarket – they may carry disease and not be suited to the climate. Judging when to harvest garlic is an art. And when it's ready to be eaten, you'll know how and when to harvest. I also got a lot of info from the questions and answers. 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Fall planted garlic will produce larger bulbs and cloves than spring-planted garlic. Be careful not to cut the garlic bulbs with your trowel as this will reduce their storage potential. In spring, apply a nitrogen-based fertiliser to fatten out the bulbs. Planted in fall and not growing rapidly until spring, garlic experiences the most dramatic freeze-thaw frost heaving of the season, bringing each clove to the surface if they’re not deep enough. On heavy, wet soils, you can start them off in modules in a cold frame before planting out in spring. Avoid delay as the bulbs open up and store less well if lifted late. After this arugula flowered, I ‘chopped and dropped’ it into the soil. I’ve found that getting garlic in the ground as early as it can feasibly be worked, is really a key part of getting a good crop from spring-planted garlic. Although fall planting is recommended, it is still possible to plant in the spring (see Growing Garlic in Spring for more info). It doesn’t take very long to grow. You can either pull a complete plant and use this scallion for cooking or fresh garlic, or you can just cut some of the leaves and use these as a nice addition to your cuisine. When you start to see the lower leaves beginning to yellow, you’re getting close. Fortunately, we've put together a guide on growing garlic in Australia, planting garlic and growing garlic from a clove. How to Harvest Garlic To chop and drop means to cut these plants at soil level, take your garden hoe, and literally chop these plants into the soil. The general rule for when to plant garlic in Australia is: plant on the shortest day and harvest on the longest day. Throughout the spring and summer next year that one clove will grow into a whole bulb by the time it’s ready to harvest. Garlic bulbs are ready to harvest in late spring or summer, from seven to eight months after they are planted. How to successfully plant garlic in the spring 1. 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