[kermit]

So for first time in 7 years of GYO, i have had complete failure of my beloved garlic. I've never bothered too much with soil prep and always got great results using the music variety, bearing in mind my location. This year the growth was v small and spindly. Then when I pulled them every one looked tiny, with only a few rotting, slimey, small cloves. Never seen anything like it.  Completely unusable.  We have had an appalling summer here, do you think it's just that?  They are no more water logged than previous years , however.  The only other thing I did differently was using my own cloves saved from last year.They all seemed healthy when I planted them, and others seem to do this fine,anyone done it with music?

[ptarmigan]

My garlic last year was great, this year I think it was just the weather. It's been cold, windy and wet here since June, I think it's just a bad year. I've pulled them and they are now drying in outhouse, but I think a closer inspection will lead to most of them being thrown away...

[dave43]

same here in sunny Manchester. Small cloves almost unusable, went to the trouble of buying specials from my visit to Harrogate show last autumn  even those have not done anything. found they all got rust on them and wondered if this was the problem.

Dave.

[Nobbie]

I'm in Manchester, and I've had a great crop this year, so I doubt it's just the weather. When did you plant it? My crop last year was rubbish, but that was a combination of rust and leaving it in the ground too long after it was ready and the outer skin had started to rot in the wet ground. I harvested mine just before the latest bout of wet weather, but if you left yours in the ground it might explain the slimy cloves.

[JayG]

Replanting some of your saved garlic is a common practice, and if nothing else ensures you are not introducing any diseases to your plot (assuming you didn't have them already, of course!)

Sometimes the margins between success and failure can be very slim - your soil may have just been that little bit colder and more waterlogged (and for longer) this year which tipped the balance.

Good idea to rotate garlic - I had my first rust-free year for several after growing them in a different spot this year, although you can never rule out the effects of the weather during the growing season.

[anchorman]

When did you plant cloves? I do mine in autumn as I understand they need a few nights of freezing weather to start multiplying. I lifted mine in may and had the best crop ever. Might be soil needing a feed, I just scatter a few chichen pellets around and keep them weeded.

They do get rust as do my onions but not bad enough to spoil things and I always use new cloves. Hope this helps.

[Gardener and Rabbit]

I've had the poorest garlic crop ever this year too, I think it's just been a bad year for it.  It's had to contend with the cold spring, the gales we had in June that blew some of them over, and then a brief hot spell when it was also very dry. My crop this year is a mix of rounds & very small bulbs that have just 3 or 4 cloves. 

[Thrutchington]

Not a bad crop in lancs but certainly not the best I have had in 10 years of growing it. Dried out ok but was rusted, it's usable and very tasty.

[timdunn]

I had a decent crop a bit further north in South Aberdeenshire although the outer layers of many of the bulbs had started to go brown. Hopefully, this won't affect their storing. I plant mine through membrane which I use again each year. I think this reduces water-logging. I also use the outer sets from the largest bulbs to replant each year (for 4 years now) which seems to work well.

[Nikkithefoot]

I had a problem with Music 2 years ago and haven't grown it since. Bulbs went mushy,didn't store and thinking back the cloves weren't plump when planted, they had a brownish tinge to them. They grew perfectly normally until just before harvest. I did some research and think it might be due either to Bulb and Stem Nematode or Fusarium Basal Plate Rot.

Some friends and I got a bulk order from a certain company and we were all affected to a greater or lesser extent. I can post some pics if I remember to see if yours is the same as mine was, but all my pics are on my home PC and I am on my hols with my laptop. If you want me to post some pics PM me as a reminder and I will do it when I get home.