People either love it or hate it, but for those of us in the “love it” camp, garlic is a total kitchen essential. It finds its way into almost every savory dish I make! The best part? It is incredibly easy to grow and propagate right in your own backyard. Here is how you can keep your garlic supply going year after year.
Propagation via Bulbils
It all starts with the flower stalk. About 30 to 40 inches up the stem, the plant will develop what looks like a little pod (an umbel). Inside these pods, you’ll find “bulbils”—tiny little clones of the garlic plant that you can use for propagation. Eventually, these pods burst open to reveal flowers, though many home gardeners never see them. Why? Because most of us snip off those garlic scapes (the flower stalks) early on to make sure the plant puts all its energy into growing a big, juicy bulb underground. If you want bulbils, you’ll have to let a few plants do their thing!
How to Grow Garlic from Bulbils
Bulbils look like miniature garlic cloves, just much smaller. If your plant produces them, you can plant them unpeeled about an inch deep right after you harvest your main crop. Just a heads-up: the plant that grows from a bulbil in the first year won’t look like a typical head of garlic. Instead, it usually forms a single, round “solo” bulb without individual cloves.
Harvesting in the Second Year
If you leave those solo bulbs in the ground over winter (or store them in a frost-free spot and replant in spring), they will finally develop into small, multi-cloved heads the following year. At that point, you can eat them or use the cloves to start the cycle all over again. Propagating from bulbils takes a bit of patience since it’s a two-year process, but it’s a fun way to multiply your harvest for free!
Propagation by Dividing the Bulb
If you don’t want to wait two years, the easiest way to get more garlic is simply by dividing a mature bulb. Just break the bulb apart into individual cloves and plant them about 2 inches deep in well-prepared soil. Make sure the pointy end is facing up! Cover them with soil and give them a good drink with your watering can.
One pro tip: Try to use garlic grown locally or from a garden center. Garlic from the grocery store (often imported from places like China) might not be acclimated to your local climate and often won’t thrive in American garden conditions.
