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All garden work is aimed at one goal – to get a rich harvest. After all, the more fruits we collect, the better – part will go for sowing, the rest will be processed in the household. However, when it comes to increasing the yield of garlic, there are not so many options. One of the most common, although not scientifically confirmed, is to tie the leaves of a plant in a knot. You will learn how to knit summer garlic correctly, when it needs to be done and how to remove the plant later, in this article.
Why tie
Weaving a braid of garlic leaves, according to many gardeners, is necessary so that at the last stage of the growing season the plant gives off nutritious juices to the bulb, and does not continue to grow green mass. When the structure of the leaves is broken, they gradually begin to turn yellow and die off, which means that access to them is lost. Since it is no longer necessary to provide the green part of the spit, the plant focuses all attention on the bulb. This allows you to increase its size and weight, make the cloves healthier and more suitable for further reproduction.
However, there is an opposite point of view, the supporters of which argue that it is not necessary to tie the leaves into a braid, since this does not affect the vegetation of garlic. Moreover, an incorrectly performed procedure can harm the garlic and the harvest will be less.
The only thing that both sides of the discussion “Braid vs. Weaving is pointless ”- it is necessary to cut off the arrows of garlic in order to stimulate it to ripen as soon as possible. If you are going to leave the bulbs for ripening, then leave one arrow and break the rest.
When
Moving from theoretical disputes about the appropriateness to practice, it is important to know when to tie the leaves. This largely depends on the variety of garlic that you grow in your area. For most winter varieties, the ripening period falls on July, that is, the middle of summer. Depending on the weather conditions in the current season, the dates may vary slightly. It is necessary to knit the green part of the bush 3-4 days before harvesting.
Be guided by the state of the leaves and arrows of garlic, they will tell you the right time. Initially, the arrow that the plant releases is coiled. The closer the ripening period of the bulb, the more the arrow straightens. To avoid breaking the stem and subsequent decay, it is necessary to cut the arrow, and then tie the leaves into a braid. It is noteworthy that young garlic shooters can be eaten by adding to a salad or marinating.
The timing largely depends on what period of the year you planted cloves or bulbs. Seeds sown in spring can be processed in mid-August, since this is the time when the final stage of plant growth begins. Whereas landing for the winter requires earlier processing – approximately at the beginning of July.
How to tie
A pigtail of leaves should be dense enough not to fall apart in the first minutes. Keep in mind that they are quite rigid, so you will have to make a lot of effort.
Wear gloves to protect your palms and fingers from cuts and garlic juice.
Before weaving, it is important to cut the arrow. Do it obliquely, leaving about 3 centimeters of the stem to the top leaf. You cannot pull out the arrow, as you can damage the bulb, and this will lead to its death. Use scissors, and cover the cut with wood ash or lime so as not to infect the plant. For example, the stem nematode will only be happy with easy access to the inside of the plant.
When the procedure is over, tie one knot on the leaves if it is about 25-30 centimeters long, and two knots if the length is more than 40 centimeters. To do this, take two or three sheets that are nearby, twist them together, trying not to break them, and then make a knot.
You can also weave a braid from closely spaced leaves, this process is identical to braiding hair. You will need three sheets, which should be alternately interleaved, tightening each pass, the end of such a pigtail can be knotted.
When to dig
If you weave sheets of garlic, then you can speed up the ripening of the bulbs, which means you can start digging a few days earlier. However, the individual characteristics of different varieties affect the duration of the ripening process. Therefore, rely on the knowledge gained after growing a particular variety or ask the manufacturer for information. The lack of information about the characteristics, duration of vegetation and the timing of ripening of different varieties of garlic very often interferes with gardeners. Usually, garlic cloves of different varieties coexist on the same bed, which is why the collection period is different for each.
In practice, to determine the readiness of the bulb, gently rake the ground and inspect it. Scales, or husks, to whom it is more familiar, should be dense, not damaged. To the touch, the teeth should also be dense.
A few weeks before the expected ripening date, check different bulbs from the beds. First of all, this will help you not to overexpose the crop in the ground, because overripe bulbs lose a large amount of nutrients, it becomes much more difficult to store them. Moreover, the winter variety already does not differ in the length of the shelf life.
In cases where a visual inspection did not give you reliable information, you need to completely dig out the bulb and clean it. In a ripe bulb, the scales are easily separated from the cloves, and they themselves are dense and juicy.
Harvesting dates for winter bulbs are in mid-July. Traditionally, ripening is determined by yellowing leaf tips, straightened arrows and cracking bulbs. Moreover, the false stem becomes soft, and under the weight of the green part of the plant, the bush falls to the ground.
Don’t rely solely on dates or the lunar calendar when it comes to your landings. Yes, the harvest time for winter varieties is between July 15-20 and August 1, but for each plant it is different, so do not be lazy to check if you should dig or it is better to wait a couple of days.
Digging in dry weather, early in the morning or late in the evening, so that the bulbs do not get burned from direct sunlight. Both spring and winter types of crops do not tolerate overexposure to the ground and high temperatures, so try to do everything right, then it will be much easier to save the crop. Pry the bulbs out of the ground, clean them of adhering lumps of dirt and put them under a canopy to dry.
Video “Do I need to cut the garlic arrows and twist the leaves”
In this video, we are talking about whether it is necessary to cut the arrows, twist the leaves so that the head is tied. In addition, you will see how to do everything right.
