(1) Finding Garlic Seed. The following tips are the most important things to consider when getting ready to plant garlic in spring. Planting Garlic Garlic does well when planted in tons of organic matter, because it needs a continuous supply of food for the 10 months ahead. Testing Garlic Planting Dates. Garlic and onions are, in my opinion, some of the most satisfying crops to grow. I have grown garlic in the same bed for a number of years and they always produce a great crop with very large cloves. General Guidelines for Garlic Planting: Zones 0-3 (if no permafrost): Plant garlic in early to late September. Come along with us as we plant … In high summer, the garlic plant will begin to die down. Garlic is one of the many plants that benefit from crop rotation. We're excited to finally start planting the food we'll be eating over the next few seasons! A sandy, clay loam is best. Planting calendars are designed to calculate the best time to start seeds and plant a garden. Because of this, you will want to plant your garlic in a different garden bed or area of your yard each year. For example, if planting in hardiness zone 5, the last frost date is generally between April 1st – April 15th, and the first frost date typically falls between October 16th – October 31st. Plant the garlic in full sun in well-drained soil. So enjoy, keep learning, and happy gardening! Plant Care Library. The first challenge for many growers is finding spring garlic bulbs to plant in the first place. Garlic has well-developed root systems that may grow more than three feet deep in well-drained soil. The leaves, starting with the oldest and bottom-most, will begin to turn yellow and dry out. If they are hardneck, I do not think they will have time to send out the scapes. Below is a library filled with pages on what we grow in Seattle. Just remember, we were all novices once, and no one knows it all. This is totally normal. Zones 7-9: Plant … Garlic can grow well in cold climates including some parts of Alaska. Timing for all planting is based on first and last frost dates. They are among the first transplants to be tucked into the early spring garden, and are ready to harvest at the onset of peak harvest season, a harbinger of the forthcoming abundance. Planting in October gives you a nice crop in August. So wherever you plant garlic, don’t book the space for other crops until late July, when most garlic should be taken out of the ground to be dried and stored. At Swansons, we’re dedicated to growing the smartest, most adventurous, and healthiest gardeners in the Pacific Northwest. This month, we're planting garlic, radishes, shallots, climbing peas, and lots of annual flowers. Zones 5-7: Plant in mid to late October. Zone 3-5: Plant garlic in late September to early October. It is fine to plant garlic in the same spot every few years, but you will want to plant non-allium vegetables in the years in between. In heavier soil, plant it in raised beds that are two to three feet wide and at least 10 to 12 inches tall. I am in zone 5 and grow hardneck garlic. This die-down is the garlic plant sending all the stored energy from the leaf mass down to the bulb underground, which is growing like crazy at this point. To plant, break-up the cloves and plant each one individually with the point facing upwards. It's March in Seattle, and the signs of new bird and plant life are everywhere. I know from past experience that the whole bed produces about the same size garlic. When winter comes, the top will be frozen to the ground. Very likely the plants can grow to 6" to 10" tall, then they can be harvested as garlic greens, just like green onion.