how to grow garlic, a q&a with filaree farm

MY FIRST EXPLORATION INTO growing garlic was also my first encounter with Filaree Farm. I hate to confess how long it has been since I first read “Growing Great Garlic,” the popular book by Filaree’s founding farmer, Ron Engeland (hint: publication date, 1991). Today, it’s Alley Swiss who farms the venerable Filaree acreage in Okanogan, Washington, where organically grown seed garlic has been produced for more than 30 years.

In between his daunting chore list—Alley harvests more than 20,000 pounds of Allium sativum a season, representing a staggering 100-plus varieties from around the world—he made time to answer all my garlic-growing questions, from the best varieties for various regions, tastes from hot to mild, and more.

my q&a with alley swiss

Q. In my Zone 5B Northeastern location, I have done very well with hardneck varieties [detail above, and growing in my raised beds, top photo]. As a seller of garlic to customers all over the U.S., can you suggest the best variety choices for different regions?

A. Many people don’t know that they can grow garlic where they live. At Filaree Farm, we have heard from customers who have grown both hardneck and softneck varieties in every state, including Hawaii and Alaska.

To clarify, garlic varieties are often divided into either softneck or hardneck, with different varietal groupings within those two categories that share common traits. The key difference is that hardneck varieties send up a seed stalk (or scape–which is edible) from the center of the bulb that should be cut, whereas softneck varieties do not have a seed stalk. I suggest these varieties for the following regions:

Northeast: Both softneck and hardneck varieties do well in the Northeast. ‘Polish White’ is in

herbs how-to edible plants from seed for beginners Switzerland Poland state Washington state Hawaii