Garlic is our cash crop (not the typical cash crop the Garden Peninsula is known for). It didn’t start out that way. But when the public started getting a hold of our garlic and then  coming back for more and more, we realized we were onto something. Our garlic is really really really good — at least that is what everyone keeps telling me. I don’t have anything to compare it to because I eat only our garlic. But I can tell you that holy moly, garlic fresh out of the garden is fantastic. It has all the good garlic taste without the strong, overpowering garlicky flavor you get with grocery store garlic that has been sitting in a giant warehouse in China waiting to be shipped to stores across the US.

Yes, most of the garlic sold in stores is from China.

Since we’ve started selling our garlic, a garlic cult has developed around the Garden Peninsula. It isn’t quite replacing the standard Garden Peninsula cash crop. But it makes me happy to know that people are appreciating really good food.

Folks who buy our garlic buy it in large quantities — it will keep for at least 6 months if stored properly. Never, ever, ever put garlic in the fridge. One regular customer told me she gets really pissed off when she runs out of our garlic. Now she buys about 12 pounds a year and gives some away as gifts (only to her very best friends). My sister’s husband told her never to bring that store-bought crap home again (and she works in a health food store). Garlic makes a good Christmas gift for foodies because they will really appreciate the quality.

You don’t have to be a gourmand to appreciate good garlic. In fact, people who claim they don’t like garlic are especially surprised by the taste of quality garlic.

Gardeners buy our garlic for seed, then they can have all the garlic they want and they get the added bonus of being able to taste it right after it has been harvested, when it is beyond fantastic.

You plant one clove, you get a bulb. What a deal. A four-fold yield. Then you keep some cloves to plant in the fall and you perpetuate your crop. Garlic takes nine months to grow. Plant it in October. Mulch it heavy. Uncover it in the spring and watch it grow. Harvest it in July when the leaves start to brown and then dry it so it stores until the crop is ready next year. Voila! You have really fantastic garlic year-round. Not that grown-in-China crap. Oh yeah, another bonus about growing your own garlic is garlic scapes. If you don’t know about garlic scapes, you’ll have to wait for another post.

If you don’t have garden space, no problem. Buy it in bulk, store it in a cool, dry airy place and it should last for at least six months. We store ours in mesh bags in a dark, unheated closet.

We grow three varieties, all hardneck (softnecks don’t grow well in northern climates)

• German Extra Hearty is the standard garlic. It is easy to peel and has about 4-5 large cloves per bulb. The easy-to-peel part is very important.
• Russian Red is on the hot side and has a kick. Cloves are smaller and there are about 10 cloves per bulb
• Elephant is a sweet mild garlic with ginormous cloves. Some of our Elepant garlic is just one big bulb the size of a large onion. It is awesome roasted.
• Kiva Redis a wild garlic we cultivated from a bulb given to us by a local friend. This is some special stuff you won’t find anywhere but in some of the backyard gardens of the Garden Peninsula. It is zingy and flavorful with a wild edge. Cloves are smaller, but peel easily. Quantities are limited.

  

P.S. We will ship. Gotta fill local orders first. But I think we have plenty – 60 pounds for sale this year. Shoot me an email and I’ll get you the details.

(Rudy you are on my list)