At my normal 6" spacing, a 13x13 area would hold exactly 1 garlic plant! German Porcelain makes a large bulb. It definitely would not appreciate company in that small area. Asian Tempest is a bit smaller but I could not see any more than 3 squeezed into that area. 5 would grow in a 13x13 area but you'd be sacrificing size.

Martin

Martin,

Unless my math is bad, I think your math is bad ;-)

At your 6" spacing 4 would fit. 1 at inch 3 and one at inch 9 in both directions.

Thank you both. I've decided to pull some plants and put it in the veggie garden, at least until next fall, when hopefully I will have a better out of the way place.

Sue

There's no restriction as to how may one can plant in such a container. I stated 3, and up to 5 for Asian Tempest. One size does not fit all and all garlics and their requirements are not equal. 4 German Porcelain would indeed fit but you wouldn't get any size. One could plant all 7 if you just wanted garlic greens. But, we're talking about a plant which could get almost 6' tall if given a chance! That's got a root system which is not content to grow in a quart of soil. Besides, some of us have found that 8" spacing is the best rule-of-thumb for the larger varieties.

Also, inches in the ground and inches in a container are two different things. The garlic roots are not going to simply grow straight out 3" and then suddenly do a 90 degree turn straight down when they hit the sides. With the soil drying from the outside in, those roots will stay away from those dry edges. Thus you'd need at least an extra inch of width to cover that. The Storey book on alliums even states that planting a single clove in a 6" pot will not work.

In a 13x13 container, maximum would still be to plant German Porcelain in a triangle to keep the cloves as far away from the edges as possible to give a few more inches of suitable lateral root growth. You'd still end up with either just rounds or small divided bulbs. Besides, 9" ain't deep enough to properly support a single German Porcelain but some need to learn the hard way!

Martin

ok - I have the same question. I understand your explanation on spacing...BUT is there a comprehensive explanation of how to plant garlic in containers? The good, the bad and the ugly?

I will be using a green manure in my veg garden this winter and I wanted to try to plant the garlic in containers rather then loose the garden space. I have large (20-30gal) rubbermaid bins - about 18-24 inches deep, with drainage, ample compost and soil. I am not planting alot - only a total of 6 heads- 3 Russian Red, 3 New York White.

Where should the bins be placed? southern exposure? should I insulate (hay bales) around the bins to protect from the freeze/thaw?

Anyone with any expertise on this?

I believe that both Russian Red and New York White would lend themselves to such container growing. Neither are overly huge plants. Russian Red maxed out at around 2' for me in rich ground. Should be no problem in those deep Rubbermaid bins and 18" of soil. New York White is a softneck and possibly tops out also at 2'. Both should handle 6" spacing in a container with no problem.

Southern exposure would be best due to the garlic's need for as much sun as possible. However, that same sun could be a problem in the winter. The plastic container would be absorbing the sun's rays during the day and heating it. Then night comes and it's frozen solid again. I doubt if that's very good for the garlic. If hay or straw bales were handy, I'd definitely but them around the containers. A cheaper source of protection is bags of leaves stacked aroound them. That's not just for the extreme frost protection but to maintain a fairly constant temperature. The killer freeze-thaw-freeze cycles don't take place then.

Martin

Almost a year later now, has anybody had success growing garlic or onions in containers thru winter? I tried some softnecks and I'itoi in 13" deep 9x9" square buckets... we have enough snow for insulation here every winter but there were no signs of any survivors...

Oh Boy! I think that maybe I should eat my Elephant Garlic "seeds". I have never seen garlic growing and had no idea that it grows so large or needs so much room. I purchased eleven buttons to plant in a planter 18X30".
Someone tell me please should I try maybe just two in the planter and eat the remainder? I live in central Florida and I have been told that garlic is grown in the winter and harvested in the spring.