Growing supermarket garlic?

JacksGarden · October 2023

Looking around the local garden centres and nurseries they don't seem to have any garlic left!! 😱 🧄

So I ordered some from Amazon.

Then I went to Morrisons and the wife picked up some. And I've been looking at it and thinking, why not plant that?

I know, for example, you can plant a spud from the supermarket but you're more likely to get disease etc.

So why not grow supermarket garlic?

🧄🧄🧄🧛🧛🧄🧄🧄

amancalledgeorge · October 2023

You're probably better off using organic supermarket garlic for obvious reasons but no harm in trying them and see how they do for you.

Dovefromabove · October 2023

The varieties sold for growing in the UK are usually selected as best suited to our climate, whereas supermarket garlic is very probably a variety suited to a longer growing period, higher light levels etc. but provided there is no sign of virus then I can see no harm in giving it a go. If we had a long hot summer like 2022 it’d probably be fine.

Waterbut · October 2023

Mostly all supermarket garlic are grown in hotter climes and not suitable for the UK gardens. Keep back some of next seasons garlic bulbs and use them for planting out at the end of the year.

diggersjo · October 2023

But nothing beats fresh wet garlic?

robairdmacraignil · October 2023

Just planted cloves that had started to grow from garlic bought to eat from the supermarket and its worked out fine here with maybe some natural selection happening over the years with the better adapted ones from the supermarket now providing the bulk of my garlic stock that I will be planting again soon once I get a break in the rain.

Happy gardening!

diggersjo · October 2023

We planted ours a few days ago one one of the few dry days we've had of late. x3 type

Lautrec Wight, Germidour Pink and x1 SM large bulb. The latter were 50p in either of the 2 large well know SMs = and they were very large. I'm very much a "you get what you pay for! , but think seed sellers are in profit mode. Next year we will retain the best grown bulbs/cloves for the year after for at least half our needs/space. We get through 80=100 bulbs per year and it's rare to buy any - use chopped frozen garlic scapes and peeled garlic at times of need/speed.

pinut · October 2023

I have grown nothing but market stall garlic since 2012. The quality of the purchased bulbs are either equal or slightly lower than that of supermarket garlic as supermarkets can dictate to their producers what they will buy in and what they won't.

I buy it because it is inexpensive: five bulbs for £1, variety unknown but probably a soft neck and imported.

I crop the garlic for the greens (as a spring onion substitute), for the scapes, then later for the bulbs.

So far, I've planted about 270 cloves and will probably do a few more when the plots are fully cleared.

JacksGarden · October 2023

Thanks all. I think I'll try it alongside the "proper" seed garlic. Nothing to loose, except a few pence!

Growing supermarket garlic?

Posts