Well another weekend...and another event about GARLIC!
This time I traveled to Wilton, ON to Burt's Greenhouses
to see Mr Brian Burt talk all about how they grow garlic.
Brian and Ruth have been growing garlic for sale for 5 years now.
Held in the greenhouse itself, it was a super informative talk.
It was interesting to learn from the growers perspective.
Why they grow what they grow and how.
Brian is a very animated speaker...
so it wasn't until I went to get out of my chair that I realized how long I'd been sitting.
He kept the small group hanging on his every word.
Brian spoke about some of the issues in growing garlic...
such as bulb and root nematodes.
They use french marigolds (as shown behind Brian in the above picture)
to help the garlic fight off the bad nematodes.
He also spoke about leek moths and
how they spray the garlic in May with beneficial nematodes in the evening to combat this issue.
He grows Cutlass oriental mustard to fight off the pathological nematodes.
He overwinters the garlic in his greenhouses in order to
maintain a consistent level of moisture and temperature.
He also top dresses the garlic rounds with chipped deciduous wood due to the high tannin content.
Brian mentioned that they specifically grow garlic rounds rather
than bulbs to help keep the stock safe from pests that prefer a more developed bulb.
All in all it was a great talk that I would highly recommend to anyone interested in growing their own garlic.
It stores well (when properly harvested) and can be enjoyed in almost any dish!
I hope that Brian felt the event was a success and will repeat the event next September.
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