Getting Ready for Garlic with Two Fat Cows

Next month will be June and the winter solstice – the traditional time to plant garlic. Garlic loves rich well fed soil so it will reward you if you put in the effort and get the ground prepared well in advance.  As it is a slow growing crop and is going to be in the ground for a minimum of 6 months, choose a place where it will be out of the way and can mind it’s own business while all the busyness of spring takes place.

In the crop rotation plan it is the first thing that I move forward to the next year. So I will be coming up to Year 3 myself which means that it is going to be in Bed 4. Garlic is not a “bed-hog” like pumpkins for example but is in the ground for a long time (6-8months) so I will plant mine in the bed 4 border bed where it is out of the way and can happily grow away. I have put put a grain based green crop in the main bed 4 to break up the soil and improve it in time for the other root crops to go there later in the season.

So I have dug a trench about a spade deep and filled the bottom with cow poo. Use whatever manure you have to hand – this was quite fresh but it should be ok  - by the time the roots get down the worms and soil organisms will be working their magic on it. It’s still a month or so before I will plant.  I have also incorporated some blood and bone into the top layer of soil. Add any compost, animal manure etc that you have to hand and then leave for it to work away until planting day. As usual –use what you have available. We have 2 lovely cows who faithfully donate to the cause.  Good wholesome organic cow poo.  Hannah on the left and Ruby on the right. 

How much to plant.

My bed is about 1.5 metres wide and 3 metres long.  That’s quite a good size for a family load of garlic.  If you work out how much garlic you use over the year – it might be one bulb per week.  So I suggest 52 would be a good place to start – that way you will have plenty. Look on line for a good supply of preferably spray free or organic local seed.  Trademe have some good listings.

Planting Time.

You can plant any time from now (late autumn).  The general rule is plant twice the depth of the bulb and about 10 cms apart. So lets say 5 cms deep. Press down firmly as you back fill with soil and then water in well with liquid seaweed if you have it.  Then wait until the shoots are around 15 cm tall before you start a fortnightly liquid fertilizer regime. You can plant your own saved seed but whatever you use you get the best results from using the biggest and fattest ones.

Recipe for Haw Sauce - Made from Hawthorn Berries

As promised here is the recipe for Haw Sauce – a surprisingly delicious asian-style sauce made with the berries from the Hawthorn tree. The ingredients are very simple so the flavour really is in the haw berries. As May is duck shooting month in New Zealand this might be a good recipe to go with dinner.

I should probably have put this up last month when the berries were at their best but there are still some out there on the trees.  If you are lucky enough to live in an area where the old settler-planted hawthorn hedges are still intact then be thankful for them and try to preserve them – they are sources of shelter and food for the birds and other animals.

The Recipe.

For every 500 grams of berries you will need 1 ¼ cups of white wine vinegar or cider vinegar. ¾ cup of sugar. A pinch of salt and some good grinds of black pepper.

Wash and destalk (as much as possible) berries.Use scissors if easier.

Wash and sterilize sauce bottles. Smaller ones are good.

Put berries into a preserving pan and cover with the vinegar plus 1 ¼ cups of water. Cook until soft.

Take off heat. Carefully put mixture into a sieve and press through to remove seeds and skins. (This is a bit tiresome – sorry. Any suggestions how to make this easier would be helpful. I have been making quince paste and you have to do the same thing. My arm is still sore.)

Put the puree back into the pot, add sugar and heat gently stirring until the sugar has dissolved. Bring to boil and cook 5 minutes. Now add the salt and black pepper and pour into sterilized bottles. 

This is really delicious with pork or duck.

Credit for this recipe goes to Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and Pam Corbin and can be found in the River Cottage Preserves Handbook.