Usually the garlic does best when its dry and stored at room temperatures. I store mine in small ceramic pots with covers. The pots also have holes in them. No matter what you do, garlic will try to sprout after a time. I heard that if there is green shoots, these, and the core of the cloves should be removed as that part is usually bitter. Maybe you will have to clean them and either dry them, pickle, or roast them.

My softneck braids last 10-12 months

I don't have any softnecks that I have stored, but my hardnecks stored wonderfully in the root cellar along with the onions, another allium.

I trimmed the stems down to about an inch and just let them sit atop a flat of sand that Dad had used for something else (I don't remember what). I still have a few heads that I'm keeping to plant, and they are still firm, flavorful and not molded or sprouted.

Annie

Hardnecks do not store as well as softnecks. Typically 4 to 6 months so they are the first to use. Softnecks 6 -12 months. With fall planting this usually isnt much of an issue but one of each type results in home grown garlic year round.

The bulbs that sprout on me get planted for green garlic which I am just starting to use now.

If u remove the shoot and moldy portion whats left should still taste fine.

I hang my garlic in the garage with no problem. Hardnecks are all used up now but still plenty of softnecks left.

Warthog

Warthog,
What temps do you get in your garage in the winter? Does it ever drop below freezing?

garyt33

It seldom drops below freezing but the hooks are beside the door not to far from water heater and furnace. Stays about 45 to 50 degrees pretty much year round. I really should put a thermometer in there and monitor it for a few seasons.

I braid the softnecks and hang so it gets good air circultion. I save and wash my mesh bags and use for the hardnecks and hang. I still have some hardnecks that have make to this point in good shape.

Warthog

I never bring my garlic in except for enough to last a week or so. Most years I throw them in flower pots and put them in an open shed, but it seemed the ground was too damp, the bottom ones would sprout. So this past fall I tied the stalks in bundles, (I only have hardneck) liek you do for strings of chilis. They kept much better that way, but I have collected a bunch of onion bags and plan to hang them up that way as from time to time a bunch would slip out of the string and get damp on the ground. We hit 10 degrees for a low 3X last winter. I figure, if it doesn't hurt them in the ground, it won't hurt them hanging up. And because their metabolism is so slow in cold weather, I expect they keep better than they would indoors. To compare to your storage method, most of mine now have a short green sprout, less than 1/2, a few have not sprouted at all or have only maybe 1/8" of green showing. How are your rocamboles doing that have been stored indoors? Oh, and none are dried out except those that were actually damaged in harvest.