or cardboard at the bottom
of the bed and cover it with
yard wastes like leaves and
small sticks to hold the news-
papers or cardboard in place
and water thoroughly.
Add any soil left from
transplanting other plants
into the garden and keep it
well-watered. Add grass clip-
pings but never use grass
clippings from the yard if you
use herbicides or pesticides
in your garden. The materi-
als you add will decompose
during the summer. Stop
adding new materials when
summer is about half over so
the compost will have time
to decompose before the garlic is planted. Keep the
bed well-watered and fill it with soil about two weeks
before you intend to plant. Never walk on the garden
bed.
Select large, healthy cloves and press them into
the soil, about 1-2 inches deep. Space them about
4 to 6 inches apart and in all directions. Be sure to
plant the garlic with the root end down. A 4 x 8 foot
bed will normally produce enough garlic for eating
and canning to last a family of four for a year.
When the ground is frozen, mulch the garlic bed
to help prevent frost heaves and reduce weed growth
in the spring. Autumn leaves that have been run
through the lawn mower work well. Be sure to pro-
vide the garlic with extra water during dry periods.
Harvesting Garlic
Once the leaves begin to turn brown, check the
plants frequently. Let the plants grow as long as pos-
sible but do not leave it so long that the bulbs shatter
and reduce the storage ability of the garlic. Cure it in
a hot dry dar