Looking for something new in your life?


Are you a discerning garlic lover?
you don't have to be to grow garlic

Growing garlic is not difficult, nor does it require a lot of heavy lifting or physical strength
just a will to do it, a plan, and some time for planting, growing, harvesting and selling
Some of our members are retired, but don't want to stop being productive

Braidwood Garlic Growers Co-operative accepts members who grow garlic in the Southern Tablelands of NSW (or plan to grow garlic or want to learn how to grow garlic),
but depending on the garlic variety you select, you can grow garlic lots of other places in NSW and the world.

Planning:  have access to some land that you can grow garlic on -- your backyard, a small holding -- it doesn't take a lot of space. We recommend new growers start small:  try up to 5kg of Turban planting material for your first crop. Turban is easy, early and forgiving.

Planting:   garlic is planted in prepared rows, wide enough so you can access it from both sides and reach the middle. Good well draining soil is recommended and add some compost. Garlic plants are not very tall -- from 30cm to about 80cm depending on variety, and they don't spread very far -- you can grow them 15cm apart. Mulch deeply after planting.

Growing:  planting happens from March to August depending on the variety you plant. If you plant in March expect to harvest in November. Apart from weeding and a bit of fertilizer, not much happens to your garlic while it is growing. If you use a good mulch there won't even be a lot of weeding.

Harvesting: for garlic shallots: harvest when ready, clean and package, for scapes: pull the scapes and package, for whole bulbs: each plant has to be removed from the plot, cleaned and sold green or cured to extend the shelf life. Harvesting bulbs: mostly you can pull the garlic out of the plot by the leaves (you may need to loosen the soil a little for it to come away smoothly). Once out of the ground, let the garlic rest for an hour or so to dry the dirt around the roots, so you can shake it off, then cut the roots off or cut the bottom of the basal plate off to remove the roots. Once that is done, store the garlic in a nice dry place, traditionally by hanging it in bunches in a shed or kitchen, until it is dry. This is called curing. Different garlic groups require different amounts of time for curing. Turban usually takes about 4 weeks.

Selling: If you are in the Southern Tablelands of NSW and you are a member, you can sell your garlic through the Braidwood Garlic Growers Co-operative: we have markets for garlic shallots, scapes, green and cured garlic and value added products such as dried garlic, garlic slats, garlic braides, pickled scapes -- our list of products grows each year. The co-op accepts a number of varieties which are suited to the climate of the Southern Tablelands. It has established clients ready to purchase our crop and a marketing team working on obtaining new clients as well as methods of value adding our product and markets for those value added products.

If you live somewhere else, then you may need to take your garlic to your local markets or find buyers.

Want to try growing garlic in the Southern Tablelands::
Read more about membership of the Braidwood Garlic Growers Co-operative:  see  BGGCL Membership or apply to  Join