How to store garlic in the apartment 

Garlic is a tasty and vitamin-rich product. But it is harvested in the summer, in July-August, and in winter, as a rule, imported garlic is sold. How to save garlic grown in beds for your own needs if you live in an ordinary apartment? At first glance, the task seems difficult, but our advice will help even those who have encountered it for the first time.

Choice of Garlic for Storage

Garlic is different. It, like other vegetables, is divided into varieties. The quality of storage and the degree of preservation depend on the correct choice of variety and type of culture. Beginners should know that all garlic can be divided into two types:

• spring (summer);
• winter.

The first is sown in a warm spring, and dug up at the end of August. About smaller, but it is well stored even in an apartment. Quite another matter is winter garlic. It is planted in autumn, it is frost-resistant, has large heads and does not store as well.

Varieties of winter garlic:

• Gafurian;
• Komsomolets;
• Alcor;
• Sofievsky and others.

Varieties of spring garlic:

• Yelenovsky;
• Gulliver;
• Sochi 56 and others.

There are many imported varieties on the market now. Growing a culture on your own, you need to carefully study the characteristics. As a rule, winter varieties are dug up, eaten and then re-used for planting for the winter. But spring – you can save for a long time. This does not mean that winter varieties cannot be stored.

The easiest way to tell a winter bulb from a summer bulb is to look for a thick stem that extends from the roots. The spring one does not have such an arrow, instead of it there are only soft leaves. Below is a video on this topic.

Preparatory work

Those who have a cellar or an insulated barn in their house have nothing to worry about. This vegetable is wonderfully stored all winter at a temperature of 2-4 degrees in limbo. If it is well dried and not prone to disease, it will remain tasty and juicy until spring.

But how to store garlic in a city apartment? Is it possible? Yes, this is a very doable task. But before we talk about how to store garlic in an apartment, let’s talk about the preparatory stage.

Initially, the vegetable must be properly collected and dried. We give just a few tips:

• bulbs should not be damaged;
• dry them in the sun for at least 5 days;
• heads with empty grains must be removed to the side;
• if roots are present, then they are cut off (you can also do with the stem).

Everything, the bulbs are ready, you can talk about how to keep the garlic until spring.

Storage methods in the apartment

There are practically no conditions for storing this vegetable in the apartment. There may be a small pantry or a glazed balcony. The temperature regime in such rooms can change significantly during the winter. The air during the heating period can also dry out a lot.

Based on all these conditions, we will offer the best proven ways to store bulbs in an apartment. First, determine where to store the garlic. It is very important. Now you can choose one of the methods.

In a refrigerator

Storing garlic in the refrigerator is an easy and convenient way to preserve the vegetable until winter. In this case, there are two options from which you can choose the one that suits you best:

• freezer;
• vegetable section.

Many people talk about the benefits of freezing. This vegetable can be stored in the freezer for several months. To do this, just wrap it in a simple package. It will retain all useful qualities. Garlic from the freezer can be enjoyed at any time.

But not everyone has large freezers. The vegetable compartment is also suitable for storing garlic. The optimum storage temperature for it should not exceed 5 degrees. In this case, garlic is kept wrapped in paper for the winter or placed in a container with flour or sawdust. The main problem with this storage is high humidity. This product is well stored only in a completely dry form.

In glass jars

Many people prefer to store garlic in the winter in an apartment in glass jars. There are several proven methods that you can use at once. Let’s talk about the main ones:

• grinding cloves into powder;
• oil storage;
• storage in salt or flour.

The air temperature in apartments increases significantly in winter, the air becomes dry, and garlic can quickly lose moisture. Keep it in something. Remove the dry skin from the garlic first. It is best to take a large jar, place dry material on the bottom, and then start laying out the bulbs, pouring layers. As bulk material, you can choose:

• coarse sea salt;
• flour;
• sawdust.

Banks are pre-sterilized. The best way to store in an apartment is hard to find. During the winter period, the garlic will lie in jars on a shelf in the pantry, and flour, sawdust or salt will absorb excess moisture.

During the entire storage period, you will need to monitor the heads in the bank. If salt, flour or sawdust becomes wet, the bulbs will need to be removed, dried and poured again.

Storage in oil is a slightly different process. To do this, peeled garlic cloves are placed in clean and sterilized jars, and then they are poured with any vegetable oil. The oil protects the garlic from the harmful effects of microbes that can damage the cloves. In this form, garlic can be stored until spring, and it will not lose its taste.

Rosemary, oregano, marjoram and other herbs can be added to the oil. Then the cloves will be saturated with aroma and become even tastier.

In a canvas bag

Long-term storage should always be approached thoroughly. In an ordinary apartment, you can keep fresh heads of garlic in a regular canvas bag. However, it is required to place onion peel there or subject the bulbs to processing. It is as follows:

Boil a strong saline solution. Each bulb is dipped into it for a few seconds and left to dry in the sun. Once the product is completely dry, you can put it in a bag and put it away in a dark place.

The most important thing when storing this tasty and healthy product in an apartment is to watch it from time to time. The optimum temperature is +22 degrees, but it is difficult to achieve such a regime. During the heating season, the temperature can rise to +28 degrees.

Storing minced garlic is difficult. To do this, you need to dry the teeth, depriving them of moisture, and then grind them in a coffee grinder. This method is simple in the conditions of the enterprise, when it is possible to deprive garlic of water using a technological process. Remember that in this case the product loses most of its useful qualities.

Conclusion

Today we learned how to properly store garlic in the apartment. Using the suggested tips and methods, you can eat only a summer juicy vegetable all winter. This will allow you not to spend money on an expensive imported product.