Garlic plant is very easy to grow and it can be grown both in tropical and temperate climates. A detailed account of growing practices for garlic is given below:

Climate and Soil: Garlic is a cool season crop and can be grown year-round in climates where the summer and winter temperatures are mild. Garlic plants prefer direct sunlight and sunny locations. Garlic plants prefer well-drained, loose, dry soils that are rich in organic matter; however the plant can be grown in a wide range of soils and pH levels.

Propagation: Propagation is via cloves which are detached individually from the garlic bulb. While choosing garlic bulbs, care is taken to choose large bulbs which are free from any kind of infestations and are healthy-looking. Cloves will be larger in a large bulb and planting large cloves result in the production of large bulbs. About 500 – 750 kg of cloves is required to plant one hectare area.

Site Preparation: Field/site is prepared by ploughing and levelling. During the site preparation, top soil is mixed with FYM (farm yard manure)@10 to 20 tons/ha to enhance soil fertility. Then the field is divided into small plots to facilitate cultural operations.

Planting: While planting cloves, care is taken to plant them deep enough into the soil so that they can be protected from frosts. Recommended spacing for obtaining high yield is 15cm (row to row) x 7.5 cm (within the rows). Large cloves and optimum spacing is proved to give high yields in a garlic crop.

Garlic is grown as a winter vegetable in tropics and the cloves are planted from September to November. In cool, temperate climates, cloves are planted in the autumn so that the crop can be harvested in late spring or early summer.

Manuring and Watering: Garlic plants may require nitrogen@125 – 150kg/ha. Nitrogenous fertilizers such as urea may be used. These nitrogenous fertilizers are applied in two doses for best results, first dose at the time of site preparation along with FYM and second dose during the active vegetative growth of the plants.

Regarding irrigation, first irrigation is done soon after planting the cloves and after that, need-based irrigation is done. Irrigation frequency depends on climatic conditions and soil moisture level. It is important that soil moisture needs to be kept at optimum level throughout all growth stages of the garlic plant. Irrigation needs to be stopped when garlic tops start maturing and showing symptoms of wilting.

Weed Management: Regular manual weeding is recommended to keep the plants weed-free during initial stages of plant growth. In addition to this, cultural practices such as crop rotation and choosing weed-free areas for planting may be adopted for weed control. Black plastic mulch is also found to be effective in conserving soil moisture as well as suppressing weed growth.

Disease Management: Garlic plants are very hardy and are not affected by any serious diseases. However, nematodes and wood-decay fungus may be an issue in poorly managed soils. Best method to prevent these diseases is soil sterilization before planting garlic cloves and providing proper drainage in the growing fields. Other fungal diseases that affect garlic plants are pink root or stunting of the roots, leek rot, and downy mildew. Regular sprays of fungicidal solutions such as cuprous oxide plus rosin soap, rosin soap with lime-sulphur or Bordeaux mixture plus cotton seed oil will control these fungal diseases effectively.

Pest Management: Garlic plants are very hardy and are not affected by any serious pests. However, leek moths and onion leaf miners may be an issue in some areas. Leek moths feed on garlic plants thus causing holes in leaves and bulbs. Any of the recommended insecticides or sprays of pyrethrum-containing biopesticides may be used to control these insect infestations.

Harvesting and Yield: Garlic bulbs are ready for harvest in about 120 to 150 days of planting. In other words, garlic bulbs are harvested when the bulbs are well mature and after the tops have fallen and are very dry. Freshly harvested bulbs are then cleaned and cured for 4-5 days in shade. Yield of bulbs per hectare is estimated to vary from 4 to 10 tons depending on the varietal type and cultural practices.

Curing: It is an important field practice for garlic bulbs. The process involves field-drying of the outer leaf sheaths and neck tissues of the freshly harvested garlic bulbs. Warm temperatures, low relative humidity, and good airflow are conditions needed for efficient curing. Garlic curing is normally done in the growing fields itself or in the pack houses near the growing fields. Curing is essential to obtain maximum storage life and minimal decay.

Quality Assessment of Garlic Bulbs: Quality indices considered for grading garlic bulbs are, bulb appearance (it should be clean and white), proper curing of the bulbs (dried neck and outer skins should be properly cured) and the quality of cloves. Regarding the clove quality, cloves should be firm to the touch with a high dry weight. The TSS (total soluble solids) content of cloves should be >35%.

Grading: Major grading parameters are external appearance of the garlic bulbs and diameter of each individual clove. External appearance should be clean, white and free from any external defects. Diameter of individual clove needs to be about 4 centimeters i.e. 1.5 inches for fresh market. Major two grades are U.S. No. 1 and Unclassified.

Storage of Garlic Bulbs: Recommended optimum temperature (for best long term storage for over 9 months) is -1°C to 0°C (30°F-32°F) with low relative humidity (60-70%) and good ventilation. According to UC Davis, garlic can be kept in good condition for 1-2 months at ambient temperatures i.e. 20°C-30°C under low relative humidity (<75%).

Physiological and Physical Disorders: Major physiological and physical disorders found in garlic bulbs during storage are freezing injury and waxy break down. Garlic freezes at temperatures below -1°C (30°F).

Major cause of waxy breakdown is the high temperature during harvest of the bulbs. When such bulbs are stored, small, light yellow areas develop in the clove flesh that darkens to yellow or amber with time. The affected cloves become translucent, sticky and waxy. Outer dry skins of the bulbs are not usually affected. Waxy break down is normally seen in stored and shipped garlic bulbs. Low oxygen levels and inadequate ventilation during handling and storage may also cause waxy break down.

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