i really don't know, but i do know that lester, said that they grow really big over the winter if you plant in the fall. never said what month. just fall. and when i was talking to ronnie, my potatoe in the straw friend i'll just call him that for now. he love to plant the potato's in the straw. its the only way he does. ok, anyhow, i was asking him if he liked the egyptian onions i gave him. he said they were good.and we got onto the subject of garlic and onions when to plant them and (it was a few weeks ago) he said now is fine, he said always in the fall. i always learn the good stuff from the older ones!! LOL imagine this, my nice smart hubs let me know that in the next few years i will be 40!! how nice of him. i remember 20 years ago we used to laugh at them 40 yr olds!! now we are almost there. well he will be. OOPS!! sorry ot!!! ~~Medo

carolynp, I am quite sure it's because you don't want any tender green growth, which is what you would have if you plant now, and it would freeze when the temp drops. You want the bulb to begin putting out roots, and establishing itself for growth in the spring. I did plant mine this month, because my neighbor gave it to me (with some shallots) and I wanted to try them young and green. I've always planted my garlic (for mature bulbs/drying) in the early spring, same as onions, so I will continue do do so.

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden

I'm in Atlanta, GA and I planted some garlic last September and had no problems with them freezing over the winter. The bulbs were somewhat small when I harvested them this summer, but I think that was because I didn't till the area I planted them in much. I had read (after the fact) that garlic likes loose soil. So, I think the soil was too compact to allow them to grow bigger. This year I've planted them in my SFG, so I'm hoping the nice loose Mel's mix will let them grow to their full potential:) For me, it may just be that our winters here are mild enough not to cause any damage. Although we did have one or two days of snow this year!

Granny plants in early spring because that's when she's back home in good Ol' Washington. hehe. Boy am I envious!

My information says that garlic likes to sprout in cool soil, 55-60 F. I planted mine around Columbus Day last year and they did fantastic. Were up in 3-4 weeks and grew to 8 inches by the end of the year. I think planting them while it's still hot increases the chance of swelling and splitting rather than sprouting.

Fall planting is preferable in Eastern WA, but spring planting is acceptable, although it does give lower yields. Since I have a neighbor who loves to share hers (grown by her son) with me, I only plant a couple of cloves in the spring to use mainly as fresh (green) if she's slow in bringing her lovely dried ones to me. I did put a few out last month, way too early, and only one has sprouted. I'll just ignore them until spring. If they grow, they grow :-)

Sinfonian, if I had more room in that Ranger, I'd pack you up and take you along *g*

Granny

Here is a link that might be useful: Annie's Kitchen Garden