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Garlic Giveaway from Peaceful Valley

October 10th, 2012

Last week I was thinking to myself that it was time to look through all my garlic and pull out the nicest bulbs for planting. Garlic is one of those crops that I’ve been growing since I first started gardening. It’s so easy to grow and brings such great reward.

Earlier this year, my interest was piqued when I read that softneck garlic stores longer/better than hardneck garlic. As much as I’ve read in my lifetime, I have never heard this tidbit of information before. Hardneck varieties of garlic are all that have been grown at Chiot’s Run, because it grows better in colder climates. Though, I have seen softneck garlic at the farmers market, so I know it can be grown successfully. Most of what I see is hardneck though.

Over the past few years, I’ve grown most of my own seed garlic as well. I do occasionally long to grow new varieties for flavor and to see if I can find ones that do particularly well in my climate/area. Your local farmers market can give you an idea of which varieties will do best, ask around, or just try a few that sound interesting.

With so many questions about planting garlic in the comments of this post, I wrote a Garlic Planting Guide over on the Your Day Blog.

When Peaceful Valley contacted me about doing a garlic giveaway I obliged, knowing one of you would love to win their garlic combo pack for your garden. I’ve talked about why I love Peaceful Valley before, so I’m happy to support a company I appreciate (they aren’t paying me to do this post, though I did get some softneck garlic to try).

What can you win?

A Garlic Combo Pack – Comprised of 1 head of Elephant (conventional), 3 heads of California Early White (organic softneck), 3 heads of Purple Italian (organic hardneck), 3 heads of Russian Red (organic hardneck), 3 sets of French Red Shallots (organic). Should yield approx. 50 plants, needs approx. 6-8 sq ft.

A Quart of Liquid Kelp – Cold-processed liquid kelp Enzymatically digested, concentrated liquid extract of California Bull Kelp (Nereocystis luetkeana), harvested from kelp beds in the Pacific Ocean off the Northern coast of CA. Freshly harvested kelp is rapidly processed at low temperatures, using naturally occurring enzymes isolated from the kelp, to digest and liquify the chopped kelp into a dark liquid extract.

a 10 gallon smart pot – which you can use to grow your garlic in if you don’t have enough space in your garden.

1 Garlic Twist (clever kitchen gadget that minces the cloves when you twist it; easy to use and clean)
and a print of your garlic variety.

So why kelp? Peaceful Vally has a great video that recommend soaking your garlic bulbs overnight in kelp before planting. I used kelp before, but I have soaked them in a baking soda and fish emulsion mix. You can bet I’ll be doing experiments by soaking a few and not soaking a few to see how they grow (similar to my remove or leave the scape experiment). If you’d like to read my post on planting garlic including a few of the varieties I grow, head on over to this post.

All you have to do to enter to win is to comment on this post. Contest will end at midnight PT on Wednesday, October 17. contest closed…check back for more great giveaways in the future.

Do you grow garlic in the garden? If so, what’s your favorite variety?

If you’d like more chances to win, there are 7 other blogs doing this same giveaway, with different varieties of garlic.
Peaceful Valley’s Organic Gardening Blog for ‘Bogatyr’
Gardenerd for ‘California Early White’
A Suburban Farmer for ‘Purple Gazer’
North Coast Gardening for some ‘Russian Red’
Western Gardeners for ‘Purple Italian’
Living Homegrown for ‘German Red’
Dirt Du Jour divas are giving away French red shallots

391 Comments to “Garlic Giveaway from Peaceful Valley”
  1. Barb on October 14, 2012 at 12:02 am

    What an amazing give-away! Garlic is something that every gardener can grow, and I’d welcome the chance to widen the varieties I know. And shallots. Never tried, but they are either very expensive or totally unavailable in the organic section.

    Reply to Barb's comment

  2. MICHAEL on October 14, 2012 at 12:43 am

    I have not grown garlic before but I want to find out if it is better than store-bought.

    Reply to MICHAEL's comment

  3. Jodell on October 14, 2012 at 12:51 am

    Last year, I grew softneck varieties-CA White, Polish White, Chinese Red, others I picked up here and there. I grew them in 5 gallon smart pots. Mid-spring, I realized that I had too many cloves in each. They were small and I ate them all by the end of summer. I had them in everything including garlic in my cream of wheat with butter.

    I am so excited this year because I found out I could grow some hardneck in my area, Sacramento, CA. I had been looking for nurseries closer to me so I could find garlic that would do well in my climate.

    I did not expect to be able to grow hardneck. I am trying out the Russian Red and Italian Purple from Peaceful Valley. They were very hard and larger than I thought they would be.

    What I look forward to is the Bulbils. I am aim toward organic and perrenials. Even one of my tomatoes plants has lasted two seasons. It did not grow fruit this year but I am going to keep it going to see if I can get it to fruit. I am so enthusiastic about the bulbils, learning how to use them is fascinating-the whole idea of new experiments with them. I have a new fascination with learning more about garlic anatomy and history.

    Reply to Jodell's comment

  4. Lisa B on October 14, 2012 at 12:53 am

    Totally love growing garlic, and who could not use MORE Garlic, especially good garlic?! Thanks for the chance to snag some for free. :)

    Reply to Lisa B's comment

  5. Chris Daniel on October 14, 2012 at 1:03 am

    I have found that garlic is a wonderful and rewarding crop. Like you, I have only grown hardnecks. I purchased my initial seedstock at a farmer’s market, and the varietal is unknown. Just last week, a friend requested some of my homegrown garlic so she can make roasted garlic. I’m not sure how well the hardneck will work given how tough the center portion is – very difficult to cut through! But this is certainly a reason to now consider growing softnecks!

    Reply to Chris Daniel's comment

  6. Patricia on October 14, 2012 at 3:26 am

    I too have not grown garlic but do purchase a lot of it in fresh form & in powdered form. Cannot do the garlic salt tho. The container growing sounds interesting to me & think will try that to begin & then maybe move on to other planting methods.
    Just put up 2 jelly jars of garlic bulbs in olive oil. Buying the “wok” oil to use in stir fry dishes gets to be expensive, so am experimenting doing this to have my own garlic oil.
    Am interested in learning all that can about gardening. Am in upstate SC.
    Thanks for letting us newbies in on your knowledge & in on your testing this & that.

    Reply to Patricia's comment

  7. Rob T on October 14, 2012 at 5:55 am

    Last year i grew (organic) Georgian Crystal, Georgian Fire, Chet’s Italian Red, Chesnok Red, and Erik’s German White. I had great success with each variety and have set aside some of the larger bulbs to plant this year, which I am getting ready to do this coming week!

    Reply to Rob T's comment

  8. Lisa Quintero on October 14, 2012 at 7:48 am

    WOW, roasted garlic is the best. Would love to grow my own garlic.

    Reply to Lisa Quintero's comment

  9. Mary on October 14, 2012 at 9:59 am

    Garlic is one of the staples of our diet which is mostly Middle Eastern by heritage. My mother, who is now 93, has grown garlic in all her gardens, and I want to carry on that tradition! Thanks so much for your informative blog!

    Reply to Mary's comment

  10. veronica on October 14, 2012 at 10:02 am

    I love garlic!

    Reply to veronica's comment

  11. sue hafenstein on October 14, 2012 at 10:37 am

    i love the garlic!!! since it comes in different strengths i can use it in delicate cooking!!! love this stuff!!!

    Reply to sue hafenstein's comment

  12. Janice on October 14, 2012 at 10:39 am

    Oh, how wonderful! I planted garlic for the first time last year and I’m hooked. I’d love to win this fabulous prize.

    Reply to Janice's comment

  13. Kathleen on October 14, 2012 at 10:50 am

    Although I have gardened for years, I have not grown garlic, In the past, as an elementary teacher, I was so overwhelmed in the fall with class preparations and harvesting my garden that I didn’t have time (or energy) to do one more thing- like planting bulbs. Now that I’m not teaching, I have more time and energy and am interested in learning something new. I like to do the things you mentioned in your post – experiment with new techniques and a control group. FUN!

    Reply to Kathleen's comment

  14. Debbie on October 14, 2012 at 11:04 am

    I’ve been growing garlic since the beginning of my gardening days too. I agree, it’s so easy and it is so rewarding come mid-summer and suddenly you have hundreds of heads of gorgeous garlic. We’ve always grown hardneck too but I’m totally interested in softneck if it stores longer. How awesome. Oh…and I have used those smart pots for the last three or four years for my potatoes. We have such heavy clay soil that the thought of putting them in the ground has always made me a little nervous. The smart pots work great. Okay…I’m off to get my garlic in the ground for next year. I’ve been putting it off (not feeling well) but it needs to get done. NOW. Thanks Susy, as always, for the inspirations. xo

    Reply to Debbie's comment

  15. Ron on October 14, 2012 at 11:39 am

    I’ve been growing garlic for over 10 years now. Even though I’m in zone 5
    and should be planting hardneck garlic I grow softneck because it does store so well for me. The variety that we’ve grown to love around our house is california late softneck. It’s been growing fine for us for here over 7 years now.

    Reply to Ron's comment

  16. Tammy Glassey on October 14, 2012 at 12:06 pm

    I’m very excited about growing garlic for the first time this year!

    Reply to Tammy Glassey's comment

  17. Julie R on October 14, 2012 at 12:10 pm

    I have never grown garlic before, have the perfect spot in my garden to start my addiction :)

    Reply to Julie R's comment

  18. Pam Burke , on October 14, 2012 at 1:19 pm

    This looks like fun! I have my planting bed all ready.

    Reply to Pam Burke ,'s comment

  19. Lethea on October 14, 2012 at 2:28 pm

    I have been researching and trying to learn about growing garlic for my family & stumbled on this post and giveaway=D I would so love a chance to win this great package but even if I don’t I’m glad to have the info from your post!
    Thanks bunches=)

    Reply to Lethea's comment

  20. Billie Allemand on October 14, 2012 at 3:30 pm

    I have grown garlic from what I ASSUME you are calling scapes — the little bulblets that grow in the pods at the upper ends of the growing plant? And I have no idea what variety they were, but they were good and grew easily. I have been thinking of trying some specific varieties to see if they were better, less/more garlicky, etc. I haven’t much room for gardening, so rather intersperse it in my flower beds.

    Reply to Billie Allemand's comment

  21. Amanda C on October 14, 2012 at 4:55 pm

    If I remember correctly, I grow California White. I started off planting a couple of heads that I got at the farmer’s market about 7 years ago, and just save the best every year to plant the next. It is becoming acclimated to my Central California climate and almost all come up now. I plant lots so I can have green garlic in the Spring. Yum.

    Reply to Amanda C's comment

  22. Mariann Coyle on October 14, 2012 at 5:05 pm

    I love garlic, to eat. I have never had enough area to grow garlic until now, but have not yet attempted to grow the stinking rose. I also did not know that there are soft and hard varieties.

    Reply to Mariann Coyle's comment

  23. Jared on October 14, 2012 at 5:23 pm

    Sounds awesome

    Reply to Jared's comment

  24. Maureen Smith on October 14, 2012 at 5:25 pm

    This will be my first time planting garlic. I hope it likes my planting bed!

    Reply to Maureen Smith's comment

  25. Jill on October 14, 2012 at 5:41 pm

    I don’t currently have garlic in my garden, but I am adding a 2nd garden next year and garlic would be a great addition!

    Reply to Jill's comment

  26. Dawson on October 14, 2012 at 6:03 pm

    At eight years old and three years into gardening, I have only grown one variety so far. And I would like to try several more. This would be a great start.

    Reply to Dawson's comment

  27. heather on October 14, 2012 at 7:42 pm

    This is my first fall planting of garlic…I am trying elephant garlic and a white variety, you can never have too much garlic!! Also love peaceful valley!

    Reply to heather's comment

  28. Mary Sting on October 14, 2012 at 8:55 pm

    I have always wanted to try growing garlic, because of a small garden space, I never have had room. No excuse now :) AND I love garlic…maiden name is Italian, go figure…Just found your site searching how to dry peppers, sure enjoying it!
    Thanks!

    Reply to Mary Sting's comment

  29. Sharon on October 14, 2012 at 9:07 pm

    Planting some soft neck this year for the first time. I also am trying the soda and sea weed emulsion, so will be interested to see if it helps. Would love to win the garlic.

    Reply to Sharon's comment

  30. Lisa on October 14, 2012 at 9:10 pm

    Elephant garlic…yummy!

    Reply to Lisa's comment

  31. tj on October 14, 2012 at 9:49 pm

    …Hey, better late than never, right? :o) Please count me in Susy. I’ve never grown garlic before but would love to try it. I usually purchase it at our local Farmer’s Mkt. and for some odd reason I guess I’m just a lil’ intimidated by it and that is why I’ve never grown it.

    …Thanks for the chance to win!

    …Blessings :o)

    Reply to tj's comment

  32. Deborah on October 14, 2012 at 10:32 pm

    I have 32 square feet of garlic planted this fall; trying several varieties

    Reply to Deborah's comment

  33. kara on October 14, 2012 at 10:38 pm

    I haven’t had much success with my garlic lately, then again, I have no idea what variety I had growing… maybe that’s part of the problem! :)

    Reply to kara's comment

  34. Ryan on October 14, 2012 at 11:24 pm

    Have grown Music and Chesnok red. Amazing how the taste differs from the store bought kinds

    Reply to Ryan's comment

  35. Amie on October 14, 2012 at 11:52 pm

    I love garlic and I’ve been wanting to plant some this fall. Hope I win!

    Reply to Amie's comment

  36. Nicholas on October 14, 2012 at 11:56 pm

    Hey, Peacful valley im was so elated when I read the email about the garlic giveaway, I am a young man very interested in horticulture and just growing plants on a whole, I do hope that I will be able to win this prize, this would make me really happy. I have never grown garlic before but there is always a first time for everthing. And I believe that one day step by step we can encourage more Americans to be concerned by what we eat in the nature that we promote more home gardening.
    Thnx for listening, I wish you all the best!

    Reply to Nicholas's comment

  37. Maria on October 15, 2012 at 2:24 am

    I am so delighted to have stumbled upon a blog dedicated to growing garlic! Thank you!

    Reply to Maria's comment

  38. kristen oberhauser bishop on October 15, 2012 at 7:52 am

    I had my first good harvest of German Red and Phillips- my husband keeps using the big heads I am saving for planting!. I have kept the “bulbets” ( I harvested the scapes a little late) and hope to plant them too for “garlic grass” – early spring garlic flavor! I will be trying the presoaking trick- never ran across this one. Thanks!

    Reply to kristen oberhauser bishop's comment

  39. Will Perkins on October 15, 2012 at 9:39 am

    Here in Louisiana, we grow a softneck creole variety that I originally bought from a local farmer at the Red Stick Farmers Market in Baton Rouge. We have saved “seed” from this variety each year for going on five years now. We typically plant 600-800 ft of garlic each year for out CSA. This past year, we had an abundance of very large (golf ball to tennis ball) sized undifferentiated bulbs that will be planted by the end of October. I expect that these will make huge bulbs once they have another growing season to expand and differenitate into toes. Visit our CSA blog site at http://www.porthudsonorganicscsa.blogspot.com to see what is going on down south.

    Reply to Will Perkins's comment

  40. julie on October 15, 2012 at 9:56 am

    Wow! I’ve never heard the kelp tip… I totally need to get mine in the ground, but I’ll just be growing the best of the best Chesnok red that I pulled this summer!

    Reply to julie's comment

  41. Thomas Fram on October 15, 2012 at 10:45 am

    How do you tell when garlic is ready to harvest?

    Reply to Thomas Fram's comment

  42. Dara on October 15, 2012 at 10:57 am

    This is my first time growing garlic. I have purple Italian from Peaceville Valley and planning to plant this week. Will have to try the kelp trick on 1/2 to see the difference.

    Reply to Dara's comment

  43. Vicky M on October 15, 2012 at 11:09 am

    Would love to be able to plant some new garlic varieties this year. Send them on over!

    Reply to Vicky M's comment

  44. BRANDON DELIGHT on October 15, 2012 at 11:19 am

    I’ve never grown garlic before. Until I found my garlic sprouting in my pantry which I decide to plant. And they have grown a lot since.(been a month) Not sure how long it be untill I can harvest my garlic. I’m excited to learn how to grow garlic, with the help of grow organic, and can’t wait to tast my home grown garlic. :)

    Reply to BRANDON DELIGHT's comment

  45. Curt on October 15, 2012 at 11:34 am

    never thought about it until now – just wondering how a variety of different garlics in my chili would be?

    Reply to Curt's comment

  46. Kelly Kaiserian on October 15, 2012 at 11:36 am

    I am getting ready to plant a “garlic sampler” to give away to friends next year. The more varieties, the better. Thanks for participating in this give-away. Love your blog!

    Reply to Kelly Kaiserian's comment

  47. Elena on October 15, 2012 at 11:38 am

    This will be the first year I will have grown garlic – I have a hardneck variety I picked up at our local Farmer’s market recently (not sure what the name is) that is a nice tasting garlic.

    Reply to Elena's comment

  48. Karen Cassimatis on October 15, 2012 at 11:47 am

    How great that Peaceful Valley has put together this kit to get us started on the garlic growing adventure!

    Reply to Karen Cassimatis's comment

  49. Mary on October 15, 2012 at 11:55 am

    Garlic is so easy. I have never used kelp for fertility, something to try.

    Reply to Mary's comment

  50. Susan on October 15, 2012 at 12:15 pm

    I love growing garlic and have two problems, rust and gophers. We live on the coast, moist air, and have a real gopher problem. I wonder if the kelp would help with any of those problems/

    Reply to Susan's comment

About

This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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