September has been especially good for my garden. The kale revived after the hot summer and transformed into a bold hedge of green leaves and purple stalks. The tiny Sara’s Galapagos currant tomatoes are still going strong. I have a new crop of cilantro. And, for the first time ever, my fall planting of snap peas has actually yielded tasty little pods before the first killing frost!

There is still much to do before I officially put my garden to bed, but my top priority this week is to get my garlic in the ground. It needs no special care. Just dig a hole 6 inches deep, plant the cloves point up, then cover with about four inches of leaves or grass clippings.

It’s one of the first plants to sprout in the spring. And in mid-June, while you’re itching for your tomato harvest, the garlic will be itching to get out of the ground.

Mother Earth Gardens in Minneapolis carries a few varieties of garlic and it’s not to late to order your bulbs from Seed Savers.

As long as you can work the ground, you can get your hands dirty with a little garlic. Your stomach will thank you next summer.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, October 2nd, 2007 at 8:58 am and is filed under Garlic. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.