Harvest

[Old_Geezer]

Given that the recent hot dry weather has resulted in my garlic plants having very little green foliage, it's mostly yellow, should I lift them now, or wait until autumn when I'd normally expect them to go yellow ready for harvesting ?

[Redhelen72]

Garlic needs to over winter to split and form garlic bulbs - so traditionally you plant on the shortest and harvest on the longest.

When did you plant? Pull one and have a look.

[Old_Geezer]

Late last autumn IIRC. It's not the planting so much, it's whether the heat will have not only yellowed the foliage but stopped bulb growth too. I'd prefer to give them time to maximise bulb size but the state of the foliage makes me query if leaving them a month or two more is wise.

If I can't find the answer on the net I may have to just harvest them anyway.

[schippiegalette]

The easiest solution to this is to pull one up to examine it.

[Redhelen72]

Just pull one up and have a butchers

[Old_Geezer]

Pulled up one. Not a bad size. But it still doesn't tell me whether it would grow further if left. Maybe I'll get the rest tomorrow. Thanks.