What should you plant after garlic?

[James]

It was too late to plant tomatoes or peppers after harvesting garlic.

[Gary Woods]

Where are you, that you're still talking about planting? Having said that, I can get a fall greens crop in the former garlic bed. Rapini, Bok Choi, stuff like that.

Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at home.earthlink.net/~garygarlic Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1420' elevation. NY WO G

[simy1]

bok choi is just ideal around here (Zone 5.5). Have the seedlings ready, pull the garlic, fertilize, plant and water as the sun sets. Bok choi likes it more alkaline than garlic, so add a little wood ash in the fertilizer.

[George]

When did you plant those? We planted kale and collards on Aug 7, and they're only about 6-8" tall. Only the radishes made it. (Same zone, Syracuse.)

G

[simy1]

That is why you should go with bok choi, which is very quick, specially a certain hybrid which is rated at 45 days. Collards in August is too late. Kale might make it. As Gary said, rapini will definitely make it. As for all greens, quick growth follows plenty of water and frequent high-N fertilizing. All of them like a higher pH than garlic. I keep some wood ash from the winter into august so I can start the last fall greens properly.

[Gary Woods]

Whatever for?

Sorry; my personal preference. Elephant garlic isn't reliably hardy for me unless I put a thick mulch over it, and the finished produce is, well, like kissing your sister. But it certainly is impressive, if the market is the objective.

I now have a 4" white mulch over the garlic bed; just lovely!

Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at home.earthlink.net/~garygarlic Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1420' elevation. NY WO G

[Gary Woods]

You're sounding like that's a _bad_ thing!

Sorry; it's a guy thing. I admit it.

Gary Woods AKA K2AHC- PGP key on request, or at home.earthlink.net/~garygarlic Zone 5/6 in upstate New York, 1420' elevation. NY WO G

[D]

I usually plant garlic in October and pull it in July. Plenty of time to get a pepper crop (as long as the seedlings are well established...over 8" tall). I usually get peppers by early September, and this is a zone 5 microclimate in NJ.

By the way, you'll get hot peppers (up to New mexican & ananheims) a lot faster than bell peppers. Bell peppers seem to take forever.

Dan

[D]

I agree. You get some generic, stiffneck spanish roja and that stuff is great around here....'course, I put about 500 lbs of compost into the dirt every year ;) Elephant garlic was a big disappointment, same with softneck varieties.

And by the way, garlic is at $2.99 / lb around here ;) I've still got

4 braids to go.

Dan