I have some garlic bulbs...should I wait until Fall to plant them?

[LaydeeBug]

That's really it, lol

[southerncrone]

1. Depends on where you live.

If in the North, plant them. If in the South, you could go ahead & plant them or wait until Fall.

[The Velveteen Ocelot]

2. You could plant them now.

Or not. I wouldn't, but that's because I hate garlic.

[enough]

3. I live in SE PA, and always plant my garlic in the fall, before Thanksgiving.

I have local gardening friends who always plant in spring. All of us always have good garlic. I'd say the best reason to plant now is that garlic can be pretty unstable in storage, and may not 100% last till fall. So plant it now and let it have its way!

[LaydeeBug]

6. Thanks. I am in zone 7b. nt

[wishstar]

4. I plant them now under certain bushes to prevent aphid infestations

Through April is okay, although fall is usually considered preferable for better crop

But for some reason I have a holly bush and a knockout rose that are susceptible to aphids, and then ants who feed on the sweet sticky aphid trails . I hate the aphid egg infestation that develop on the underside of leaves, so my solution has been to plant garlic pods near base of these bushes every spring. Has been working great, and I even had some garlic through the winter under the holly.

[LaydeeBug]

5. Nice. Thank you

[warmfeet]

7. You will get bigger, better bulbs if you plant in fall.

That being said, your garlic may not be viable if you wait until fall. The timing for garlic planting and harvesting is a bit unusual compared to other plants. I always plant in October and harvest in July. I save some of my July harvest to plant three months later. I am in zone 4b, but the recommended fall planting, I think, applies just about everywhere. You could also plant now and let the plants remain in the ground until July 2018. If you do this, you may want to research overwintering garlic techniques. It can be done, and it may bring you back on schedule.