Picking Garlic Scapes

Right as soon as the scape starts to curl, it is ready to be snapped off. The easiest way to snap the scape is to find where the garlic is emerging out of the leaves, and snap it with your thumb and 1st finger.

Garlic Scape Facts:

• Garlic Scapes develop out of hardneck garlic.
• Softneck garlic can produce a weak scape if it is stressed.
• Scapes will store in the refrigerator for about 3 weeks or more.
• We have found we can usually get longer storage by putting our garlic scapes in a grocery store bag and folding it over put it in the refrigerator. 
• Scapes should be snapped to produce larger bulbs.
• If scapes are not snapped, bulb size will be diminished. We have grown garlic for two decades and always miss a few scapes.  Those bulbs are significantly smaller.  
• Snap scapes right after their first curl so energy will go into growing a larger bulb.  The longer scapes are on the plant the more energy goes into the producing seeds and not a larger bulb.
• If you missed snapping the scape, they will straighten out and once they point to the sky and that means it is time to harvest the garlic.
• Estimated yield of garlic scapes: 40-50 scapes equal 1lb.. This can significantly vary by variety and the timing of snapping the scape.
• Leaving scapes on can result in longer storage of garlic, but this is also due to the garlic being smaller in size.
• See our Garlic Scape recipes for ways to use this garlic delicacy.