[compostqueen]

I've dug up two Early Purple Wights so far and they are fine. I have Chesnok, Carcassone, Solent Wight and Lautrec growing away too.  I do like a bit of garlic 

[Annen]

just been taking the odd one from my garlic but its still not really ready inner skins are not well skins more like white leaves but they look really good and large but i will wait

Probably wont be long!  I checked mine on the 4th and they were white and solid looking, I had to take quite a few skins off to take this picture But I needed them out so I took them out on the 8th and they looked like this

[peedee555]

yeah might take afew out this weekend yourslookgood

[bravemurphy]

They look good.

me and the boy really want to get the elephant out but must be patient.

[Kate and her Ducks]

Think it is time this weekend to pull some of mine to see what I have. 

Germidor looks ready but think I might have to give the solent wight a bit longer (went in later).

[Eblana]

I think I will have to take mine up this weekend it is covered in rust.  Took one up the other day to see and it is actually very good - I didn't think it had formed cloves but when I peeled back the outer skin there they were.

[Trillium]

Garlic can fool you with cloving and such. I wait until I start seeing some uniform browning of tips and I know mine is ready, which is now. I'll be pulling mine up in about 2 weeks as I'm just too busy at the moment.

[JohnB47]

just been taking the odd one from my garlic but its still not really ready inner skins are not well skins more like white leaves but they look really good and large but i will wait

Probably wont be long!  I checked mine on the 4th and they were white and solid looking, I had to take quite a few skins off to take this picture But I needed them out so I took them out on the 8th and they looked like this

Hey Annen.

What variety is that one in your top picture? I planted an unknown variety last Autumn (got it from a veg shop) and the first one I pulled has a bulge a little way up the stem. It's a hardneck variety (edit: actually not sure about that now) and I thought the bulge was a seed head starting but maybe it's an extra set of little cloves like yours.

Is this normal? I've not seen that in four years of growing.

[mumofstig]

Not normal, but I had some like that last year as well  - so not rare either

[AnneB]

I believe they are called bulbils.   There is an explanation here under the section called going to seed.

http://www.gardenorganic.org.uk/pdfs/organicway/GarlicArticle.pdf

[Annen]

JohnB47, I can't remember the variety as it is the third year I've used the cloves from 2 garlics bought from Wilko's in 2009..
It is a thing that hardnecks do apparently.
The bulbils work just like cloves seemingly and they did it last year too.
I think I might buy some fresh for next year though.
Thanks AnnieB for that link, that was interesting.

[JohnB47]

Thanks Annen and others and to AnneB for that link.

Seems like the one I've dug up is a softneck after all and some of my others are hardneck - they've produced that curling scape thing.

Am I right in thinking that, if you cut through a hardneck garlic, it will always contain a solid inner green stalk (the scape) which is what makes the neck stiff? And if you cut through a softneck garlic it looks just like an onion plant does if cut through (lots of concentric layers of leaf)?

[jonewer]

Good garlic for us this year too!

Will be expanding the garlic patch next year. That said, the elephant garlic was a disapointment yet again. Probably wont bother with it next year.

What varieties do people recommend?

[arugula]

What varieties do people recommend?

The porcelain variety "Music".

[strider84]

I grew mine in tubs as I was in the process of moving house and didn't want to miss out on my garlic ended up planting them quite close (probably about 5 inches a part) A little small but happy with the yield given the space I gave them given the fact all this came out of two tubs .