Members
of the Tweed and Area Horticultural Society
were avid listeners as Paul Pospisil of Maberly spoke about garlic growing. It
was apparent by the number of members and guests in the audience as well as the
questions asked that garlic growing is a topic that interests many.
Paul, editor of Garlic News shared a wealth of
information with his audience through his personal experiences growing garlic
and his “garlic props”.
Paul’s
focus is to raise the bar on the quality of garlic that is being grown….and
growing garlic does indeed present many challenges
The
garlic clove is planted in mid-October. In April as the days get warmer, the
plant starts to grow. May and June is a rapid growing time for garlic and it is
usually harvested in July. It requires good soil, irrigation, sun and no weeds
growing along side it…really not very different from other vegetables we grow
in our gardens.
Disease, leek moth, bulb and stem nematodes
and simple greed and ignorance are the main factors that Paul feels contributes
to the poor quality of garlic grown. Presently Canada
According
to Paul, growers can’t get rid of the leek moth but they can manage it through
identification, early detection, prevention and good growing practices.
On
the other hand, bulb and stem nematodes can totally DESTROY a crop of garlic.
The nematodes are living organisms in the soil and very difficult to destroy. One
of the best practices is growing mustard in the field where the nematodes are
living to get rid of them.
Suggestions
Paul gave to the audience…plant a variety of garlic to obtain a range of flavors
and buy organic as there is less chance of having a damaged and diseased clove.
Members
were invited to purchase Paul’s garlic seed which he said was as clean and
disease free as humanly possible!
COMING
UP….
September
9…Fall clean-up
of Tweed flower beds. Meet at Moira Garden
October
7…Food!....Three ladies who teach cooking night classes at Centre Hastings Secondary School will make three dishes that are meat and dairy free. Cookbooks will be available for sale.
October
11…Carving
demonstration with Adam Haley @ 10:30 am for children and adults at Tweed library. Bring in a carved pumpkin to be judged by
Adam. First prize winner takes home Adam’s carved creation of the day!!
GENERAL
INTEREST EVENTS…
October
9...Land
O’Lakes Meeting….Carolyn Klickerman from Ottawa will discuss “square foot”
gardening which is the art of growing lots of plants in 12 inch by 12 inch beds.
Meeting starts at 6 p.m.
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