How to Store Garlic Indoors
Did you grow a lot of garlic this year? I know I did! It's great, but now I need to figure out a way to keep the garlic fresh. Here are my best tips on storing garlic!
Garlic is probably one of the easiest vegetables you can grow at home. Another great thing about it that it's very easy to store. Some vegetables need to be cleaned, parboiled and are very sensitive to hot or cold temperatures. Not garlic though. Garlic bulbs are perfectly happy in room temperature. It makes no difference if you live in an apartment or a drafty old house. It really doesn't take much to keep garlic fresh.
Storing Garlic
You start by drying the garlic after you harvest it. The fresh and sometimes damp, thick skin around the bulbs should dry up completely. The same goes for the garlic leaves that start to curl up when they dry. It's very important to keep your garlic fresh by putting it in a dry and airy spot. Make sure that it doesn't get damp, since this can cause a mold outbreak. You might not be able to store garlic properly after it gets wet either.
It takes a few weeks for the garlic skin to get completely dry. This is also the time to cut the leaves/stalks. Don't do it before the skin dries though!
Read more: Make a garlic braid
Room Temperature
You can just keep the garlic in room temperature once the bulbs are dry. It's such a convenient way to store garlic! There's really not that much else to think about. You don't need to worry about picking the perfect spot or finding s. I can store garlic in room temperature for a long time. The protective layers of skin surrounding the bulbs and the cloves help keep the garlic fresh until next fall.
How to Store Garlic – Options:
- baskets
- cardboard boxes
- hanging in bundles
- making garlic braids
- airy paper bags
I have a few garlic braids hanging in the kitchen right now, as well as a few bunches in my cottage (one in the hallway and a decorative one by my desk too.) I also keep a large paper bag filled with garlic bulbs with the leaves cut off.
This is because some garlic varieties can't be braided. I generally try to pick the ones with leaves/stalks that you can braid, simply because it's an easy and convenient way to hang them from the ceiling. Last year, I tried a few new and hardy Russian varieties with unbraidable leaves though.
More about garlic: Growing garlic in pots
Read more: Planting garlic in fall
If you haven't planted your garlic yet, then you might need to wait for milder weather before you try putting the cloves in the ground. It's going to get warmer here in zone 3 next week, which is when I'm going to plant mine. I prepared a 20 ft (6 meter) long and 3 ft (around 1 meter) wide bed for my garlic next year. Is the ground already frozen where you live? No worries, you can put the cloves in a plug tray or similar and put it in the greenhouse with a pile of leaves on top.
I hope you give these methods of storing garlic a try in your own garden!
/Sara Bäckmo
20. November 2022