Category Archives: Garlic Harvest

The Garlic Is Harvested

Gardening, garlic, Garlic Harvest, Reflections,

Each year after the garlic is harvested I let out a big “WOO HOO!” and my husband and I each sigh in relief because it is such a laborious task. This year, however, the harvest went so quickly and easily that I thought it hardly worth a mention.

For the sake of keeping a record of it I decided to write about it anyway.

250 Garlic Bulbs Harvested July 10, 2020

We harvested the crop on Friday, July 10. It was hot and humid in the morning when I got started, but I thought it would be good to get it out of the ground before the rain and storms, that were predicted for later that day, arrived. I began digging the bulbs up like we normally do but quickly discovered that the soil was moist enough that I was able to pull the bulbs out without breaking the stems. This saved much time and energy. After 40 minutes or so I had about 1/3rd of the crop harvested but my body was telling me I needed to get out of the sun.

We decided to go home for a break and lunch. Then, despite the fact that it was raining, my husband returned to the farm that afternoon to finish the harvest. While we ended up getting a decent rain that day we did not get any of the storms that surrounding area experienced. After my husband harvested the rest of the garlic he bundled and hung the bulbs that I had pulled earlier. Later that evening I bundled the rest of the bulbs that he had pulled. We ended up with around 400 bulbs total (our smallest crop ever) and plan on saving at least 150 bulbs for seed to plant in the fall.

The garlic is now hanging upstairs in the barn where it will cure for at least three weeks before being cleaned.

NOTE: For anyone thinking about growing garlic, in the U.S. now is the time of year to start looking for seed garlic. I have never seen seed garlic it sold in stores or garden centers but an internet search should produce many options. In northern parts (colder climates) fall is the time of year for planting garlic (about 6 weeks before the ground freezes). Then it should sprout up in the spring around the time the daffodils and other bulbs start sprouting.

Thanks for reading. 🙂

The Garlic Is Harvested

Dogs, Frogs, Garlic Harvest, Reflections,

WHOO HOO!!! I am so happy to have the garlic out of the ground and hanging in the barn. Especially since we got it done last week before the extreme heat arrived. This year’s harvest was much easier than the past several years because we planted significantly less garlic last fall. It was a big chore none the less.

Since my husband is working a landscaping job right now my plan was to work on harvesting the garlic in the cooler morning hours then work on bundling and hanging it later in the day because I wouldn’t have to be in the hot sun to do that part. I knew he would help as time allowed.

The harvest went even smoother than I planned. I started digging the garlic Tuesday morning and had the first 1 1/2 rows dug by about 11:00 a.m. I had planned on working until noon but it started to rain. Since I didn’t know how long the rain would last I decided to get the garlic that was out of the ground to a dry spot and then take a break. I put the garlic on a tarp under the barn overhang, where it would stay dry until I came back to put it in bundles. That evening my husband moved it inside the barn.

That early rain shower didn’t last long or amount to much, but that evening and over night we had some significant rain fall, enough rain that my husband was not needed at his job on Wednesday. By Wednesday morning all that rain had moved out of the area so we were able to get back into the field and finish the harvest.

We took the Scout and Trooper and a cooler full of cold water and drove to the garlic field. As my husband got out of the van he said something that got my attention. When I asked what he had said he replied, “It’s the biggest bull frog I’ve ever seen.”  I went to take a look and had to agree.

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Thankfully this guy did not get run over as we drove into the field. It appeared as if this was not his first close call. He had abrasions on both sides of his body that looked as if something had tried to make a meal out of him – a large fish perhaps. To keep him safe (or at least from getting run over) my husband carried him to the pond where he quickly swam away.

My husband and I worked together digging garlic and found that the rain that fell the night before had worked in our favor as many of the bulbs could just be pulled out of the ground. “The less I have to put my foot on a shovel, the better,” my husband said.

When my husband took a wagon load of garlic to the barn he returned telling me that a neighbor had come to visit. This particular neighbor loves company and has really taken to my husband. His name is Peanut.

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A while later when I went to the barn I was greeted by Peanut, and as I was returning to the garlic field he decided to follow me. This was a concern because Scout and Trooper, who were hanging out in the van, are not cat lovers. Nowadays Scout is not much of a threat because his vision is gone, his hearing is poor and his body is weak. His nose still works perfectly though. Trooper on the other hand is still a very keen watch dog who will chase off anyone or anything he doesn’t think belongs on our farm. Normally when Trooper gives chase the invaders run off and Trooper is satisfied that he has done his job. Peanut was not going to run off.

My husband attempted to introduce Trooper to Peanut and Trooper was very curious about this intruder. As he attempted sniffing Peanut from head to tail Peanut got offended. He hissed and scratched Trooper on the nose. My husband picked up Peanut and took him back to the barn area while I got Trooper in the van then headed back to the garlic field. This only lasted a few minutes before Peanut was back by the van. Scout who couldn’t see the cat got a good whiff of him then became anxious and wanted to go looking for him. Trooper got out of the van so my husband grabbed Peanut, jumped in the van and took him home. He also went by our house and got a wet soapy wash cloth and some ointment for Trooper’s scratch. While he was gone Trooper went around sniffing all of the areas that the cat had been. Looking but not finding him. He then went for a swim in the pond and settled down a bit. Just before my husband returned I walked into the barn only to see Peanut laying in front of the tractor. When my husband returned I suggested he take Scout and Trooper back to our house so we could get our work done. He agreed.

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Within an hour of having that mess settled we had the rest of the garlic harvested and by the end of the day they were all hanging in the barn. The above photo shows the approximately 1000 bulbs we harvested on Wednesday with the tools we used.

I have to admit this year’s crop is disappointing. Between bitter cold temperatures over the winter and an extremely wet spring we lost approximately 25% of what was planted. Of the bulbs we did harvest the majority of them are small. We have very few bulbs that will be large enough to use for seed garlic for next years crop.

What does this means for our future in growing garlic – I am not sure. We will just keep moving forward the best we can. Perhaps garlic farming is not in our future.

Thanks for reading?

 

 

 

 

 

 

So Much To Say – So Little Time

Bees, Blueberries, Family, garden, Garlic Harvest, Grandchildren, Reflections,

In case you are wondering – tilling, feeding, watering, weeding, mowing, growing, picking, preserving, and even time for a little fun- that’s what we’ve been up too.

We are truly blessed – let me show you.

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The blueberries are coming on strong. We have picked and frozen about 5 quarts so far.

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I picked elder flowers to make tincture, but I haven’t got to the stinging nettle yet.

 

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The hot summer temperatures have done wonders for the garden. Weeding has been minimal but we have needed to water every few days.

 

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The prayer garden is in full bloom. It has also requiring watering and much weeding.

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The kids and grandkids came for a picnic. Berry picking (eating) was a hit with Addy. She loved strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries.

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Jackson had been eating a chocolate cookie. The evidence is still on his face. Aunt Kara is amused by her little buddy.

 

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Hail! Hail! The gang’s all here! It happens so infrequently now days, that all four of my daughters are together, I always like to get a photo of them. ♥

 

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We are not the only busy ones. Check out this hive.

 

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I have spotted bees in the tickseed,

 

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on this marigold,

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and on the sweet clover. They are also foraging in the birds foot trefoil, the white clover,  Canadian thistle, oregano, lavender, and thyme.

We hope to harvest some honey soon. ☺

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Bonus Photo: Since this dragon fly posed so nicely for me how could I not include it?

If I seem to be MIA over the next week or two check for me in the garlic field. It’s time to start the harvest. Until next time – be well.

 

 

The Garlic Is Harvested

Blueberries, Blueberry Pie, currants, garden, Garlic Harvest, Reflections, The Farm, Watering, Weather,

The garlic harvest is complete and our new barn is serving it’s purpose.

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This photo is the loft area full of Chesnok Red garlic. Each bundle has 25 garlic bulbs. The other two varieties are hanging in the downstairs area. The garlic will hang for about three weeks before we begin clipping and cleaning it to prepare it for market.

Having the barn proved to be such a blessing. We were able to pace ourselves with the harvest. My husband primarily did the digging. He would dig one or two rows a day and move it into the barn. I mostly did the bundling. He pounded the nails into the rafters and hung the garlic and I tied the garlic nooses. Just kidding they weren’t really a noose, but I pre-tied loops in each end of the strings and the string was wrapped around a bunch of garlic then one loop was pulled through the other loop and the string would tighten around the garlic. The loop on the long end was used to hang the garlic from the nail.

At times, especially in the extreme heat, the work was grueling, but the process went pretty smoothly. We make a good team. 🙂

Besides harvesting all that garlic over the past two weeks we have spent time picking both blueberries and currants. Both have produced great crops this year. This has been our largest blueberry crop so far (we have picked over 3 US dry gallons) and I have put most of them in the freezer to be used throughout the year in pancakes and banana bread, but as a special treat I decided to make a blueberry pie.

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When I was making this pie I realized that this was the first time I have ever made a blueberry pie. I will confess that I used a premade, store bought, crust but the pie was delicious and it didn’t last long.

The other thing that we’ve spent a lot of time doing over the last two weeks is watering the gardens. Rain has been very scarce here this summer. The first three weeks of June were completely dry, then on June 24/25 when the rains finally came. Over those two days we probably had three or more inches of rain. While it made up for some of the deficit, all that rain at one time damaged some of our plants, specifically cabbages. We then went into a hot dry spell and our next rain fall did not come until July 16. That day our rainfall was probably less than an inch. We had a little bit more today and the forecast is for more tomorrow. Feel free to say a prayer that the forecast is correct. We are.

 

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Since the garlic was harvested and there was rain in the forecast my husband spent the day yesterday preparing the garlic field for next years crop. The garlic field has been tilled and seeded with rye grass as a cover crop.

Even though the garlic harvest is done I don’t expect our pace to slow down as there are so many things that need to be done. If we do get a good rainfall we can the spend more time weeding (always easier after the rain). The grass needs to be cut and my husband will be checking the bees and hopefully harvesting honey soon. The list is way longer than that and probably longer than I realize, but I’m sure you will read about some of it as time goes on.

I also hope to get back to posting more often and some of the posts I have planned include a second post about things we are harvesting (if you missed the first one you can find it here), a post about honey, and as I mentioned in a previous post I will be sharing my thoughts about natural skin care.

Thanks for reading and until next time – Be Well.

 

We Can Dig It

Garlic Harvest, Pond, Reflections, The Farm, ,

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This post isn’t really about sitting on the beach or playing in the sand but I thought I would show you where we spent some time relaxing and celebrating Independence Day. Unfortunately by the time I remembered to snap a picture the beach umbrella had been blown down by the wind.

We decided to give our beach a little upgrade this summer, so when we had the stone delivered for the barn floor we also had a load of beach sand delivered. The sand was dumped on the beach and since we haven’t yet had time to spread it we haven’t been able to sit on the beach.

Yesterday my husband fixed that. He just took the tractor bucket and pushed through the middle of the pile of sand forming a small peninsula of sand in the pond. We then spent the late afternoon swimming and relaxing on the beach. It was a very enjoyable day.

Now what the title of this post is really referring to is our garlic harvest. It started today. If you are not familiar with how garlic grows, it is a bulb that grows under the ground. In order to harvest garlic it must be dug out of the ground. While 7000+ garlic plants may seem like a huge number, it is not nearly enough to be able to afford any fancy planting or harvesting equipment. Thus we dig each individual bulb by hand.

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Despite the brutal temperatures today we were able to get one of our three varieties harvested.  We only had two and 1/4 rows of this variety, Red Toch, planted – probably between 1400 and 1500 bulbs. We were thrilled to be able to move them directly from the field into the barn to keep them out of the hot sun.

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Once they were all harvested my husband began tying them into bundles and hanging them from the rafters. Our barn was finished just in time and we are so grateful to have it.

While I have several posts that I am working on and would like to publish soon, this really is a busy time for us. If I seem to be MIA for a while there is probably no need to send a search party. If you do, however, decide to send one make sure they bring a shovel. LOL!

Bonus Photo

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We are not the only ones who enjoy spending time at the pond.

Thanks for visiting and until next time be well. 🙂