Garlic
For a small vegetable, garlic (Allium sativum) has a huge, and deserved, reputation.
Garlic is a member of the Lily family. It is a cousin to onions, leeks and chives.
Galic add a culinary treat to any meal making it an aromatic, boldly flavorful and healthy eating experience.
Garlic is arranged in a head, called the "bulb," which is made up of separate cloves. Both the cloves and the entire bulb are encased in paper-like sheathes (much the onion) that can be white, off-white or pinkish.
Garlic cloves are off-white in color, and although they have a firm texture, they can be easily cut or crushed. The taste of garlic is like no other; it hits the palate with a hot pungency that is shadowed by a very subtle background sweetness.
The teardrop-shaped garlic bulbs range in size; however, they usually average around two inches in height and two inches in width at their widest point. While elephant garlic has larger cloves, it is more closely related to the leek and therefore does not offer the full health benefits of regular garlic.
Plant small cloves from February to April in rows 9 in. apart and 6 in. from each other in the row.
Lift them when the leaves die down.
Dry them in the sunshine, and store in an airy, cool shed.
Author: Albert Pink :: Hits: 0 :: Added: Fri Apr 27 2007 :: Last Modified: Thu Jun 14 2007
