In the various gardens around the house there are a few phlox still sporting a blossom or two and the horizontalis is full of red berries. Our ancient burning bushes are starting their fiery transformation in to themselves, and chipmunks can be seen scampering about in their branches stuffing their cheeks with those little berries that are now ripe for the taking, but much of everything else has "gone by" as it is said. Even the grass has stopped its steroidal growth pattern for the year - I'd hate to be wrong about that.
The big thing is the leaves that are drifting down steadily so that in some places the ground is covered. I'll make a final pass with the bagged lawnmower and suck them up to be piled up for mulch. Anyway, that's what I say about that. I don't recall ever using that for actual mulch but this time I think I will look at the possibility of using it to insulate the garlic after the ground freezes.
GARLIC! We purchased some "new blood" this year at the Common Ground Fair. Probably got a bit carried away for it was enough for two beds of it - at least one bed farther than we usually plant. If we have basil like we did this year and the garlic makes like it did this year I will be forced to lay in a supply of pesto for those moments when nothing else will do - which moments seem to occur more frequently in the frozen parts of the year, which, by all accounts is supposed to come early, bring lots of luggage and stay long.
Now, this has nothing to do with anything, but have you ever noticed how willpower and judgement seem to weaken during the colder months? I know I find myself saying things like: It's so damned cold, I think another glass of wine would make it all better. After all, I may not make it through until spring. Or it might sound like this: No use in that piece of chocolate just laying there, or, even more deadly - what the hell it's macaroni and cheese tonight and regardless of what the food police say, I'm adding Spam to it, by God. I'm sure there is a graduate student in some second tier university drawing up a proposal at this very moment to study this phenomenon.
Now back to planting garlic. So I've got the beds prepared with just a touch of 5-10-5 and some compost, with a light sprinkling of powdered seaweed mulch freshly worked in. I have a little 5/8" wooden dowel sharpened at one end to make holes into which I drop the cloves. I usually plant 4 to 5 inches apart and about 3ish inches down. Anyway that plan has worked for years.
We purchased three different varieties and I thought the names of these different varieties was noted on the tags but it isn't there. How about that? Well, I couldn't tell you the name of last year's variety either - so there!
I sit on the edge of the planting box out in the garden and break apart the bulbs piling the cloves to the side. A steady breeze is blowing the tissue like material that holds everything together as I peal it off. Little flakes of it covers the ground and me as well. It is quiet except for a pileated woodpecker off in the back woods yelling about something. Even so, it seems so peaceful. This close work in the garden is a part of gardening that I love dearly. Well, harvesting, of course, but for a fall activity, there is nothing to compare to planting garlic. I guess you could say the activity pretty well defines the concept of hope. Maine winters are nothing to laugh about yet we believe in the life force of garlic to survive and bring joy to our hearts come next summer.
Some of the cloves are quite large while most are of average size. I think, as I push them into their homes for the winter - I can just taste the goodness your children will add to my pasta sauce, or the scampi I love to make - and eat! And also - and this is the secret of growing good garlic - the first thing I do when I harvest garlic is to brake open a bulb and peal a big clove, pop it into my mouth and eat it right there in the garden, dirty fingers and all. My eyes almost tear up just thinking of it. I don't quite know how it's connected, it's one of those "spiritual" things, but that little ritual at harvest time is big Mojo for next year's crop. Don't question it. Just do it and you will see. Tell 'em I said so.
GB Henderson
Podcast: http://treetopviews.com
Ah Jerry, well said. Mine is in the ground as well - purchased from the lady at Common Ground selling only Garlic! Jo
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