ACL Letter #9 - Planting Garlic and Onions
Planted the Garlic and Onions
This past week we planted garlic and onions in the garden. We plant garlic every year. We save some of our harvest each year for planting the next. Our garlic came from our good friends Josh and Morgan Wright. Josh's family has been saving this garlic for multiple generations. This kind of thing brings me gladness. I hope to keep passing the garlic down, along with other seeds as well.
This will only be the second year we have tried growing onions. Morgan and I both have this belief that onions are hard to grow and that we shouldn't plant them. It wasn't until a couple years ago that we figured out why we both thought this and had a good chuckle once we realized why. In college we both had a professor who taught our organic gardening class. He taught on dozens of vegetables. It was a hand's on class and we kept a garden. One vegetable he didn't teach on or allow us to plant was onions. He just said "don't bother" and moved along. Morgan and I took the class at different times. So when we traced our fear of growing onions back to the same professor and same class, we had a good laugh. I know plenty of gardeners who plant onions every year and have minimal issues growing them. The first time I tried, they didn't really bulb out and didn't turn out well. I'm hoping this year will be different.
Because our garden is so small, I have to get creative with spacing and plantings. I put the garlic and onions in between multiple other plantings of kale, Brussel sprouts, kohlrabi, and arugula. The garlic bulbs will be ready in June. The onions will be ready in April or May - I think. I hope.
I broke the garlic up into individual cloves. I planted them blunt side down about half way into the soil. Same for the onions.
As you can see on the bag, I bought all of the onion bulbs for $3.50 from a local feed and seed supply store - CT Garvins here in Huntsville.
Here is an onion tucked in between the kohlrabi.
More onions. Tucked in between the rows of arugula and the rows of mesclun.
Here is an overhead shot of the kale with the garlic planted in between. I spaced them 8" or so apart all throughout the kale and Brussel sprouts.
Can you spot the hungry catepillar?
Podcast on raising nutrient dense vegetables is out!
I went full nerd in this podcast. I talk about how important it is to promote healthy soils by promoting a strong environment for microbial life in your soil. I explain why its important as well. I talk about chemical fertilizers, how they are different, and how they affect your plants and in turn your health. Give it a listen and let me know what you think!