Spring Garlic Fertilizing
It’s no secret that garlic is a heavy feeder with a long growing season. Therefore, it is essential to make sure your soil has the nutrients it needs to grow the biggest, healthiest bulbs possible. We start with a good fertilization in the fall at planting time, to give the garlic a boost before winter. See our page about our Garlic Fertilization Soak that is performed before planting. Once the garlic begins to sprout, you’ll want to start spring garlic fertilizing until the garlic scapes emerge.
Spring Garlic Fertilizing:
In early spring, once you see the first sprouts, begin fertilizing your garlic. We recommend Keene Garlic’s Organic Garlic Fertilizer. It is specially formulated for garlic and all alliums. We work closely with our local fertilizer company to make sure it has all the nutrients and micronutrients that garlic needs. You can also use an All-Purpose Fertilizer.
How to Apply Keene Garlic’s Organic Garlic Fertilizer:
- Apply Keene Garlic’s Organic Garlic Fertilizer 5-2-2 or All-Purpose Fertilizer to soil per application rates on packaging as soon as garlic sprouts. Apply 3-4 times per season, about every 10-14 days, starting in early spring until garlic scape emerges. Broadcast directly onto the mulch or soil surface. Rain and/or watering will push the nutrients through to the soil.
How to Foliar Feed Garlic:
- Mix 1 Tbsp. of BIOACTIVE LiquiLife™ (formerly CX-1) + 1 Tbsp. BIOACTIVE Supercharger™ (formerly Vegetable Supercharger), + 1 Gallon of Water.
- Spray directly onto foliage, preferably towards the end of the day.
- Reapply every 10-14 days until right before garlic scapes appear.
***You can use this fertilization plan on your other garden vegetables too!***
Because side-dressing fertilizer and foliar feeding work so well together, we offer the products together in our Garlic Complete Organic Fertilization Package.
***Note: If you are a certified organic grower, you must have your fertilizers reviewed by your organic certifier before use.
I live in Peachtree City Georgia, an hour south of Atlanta. I planted the bulbs(with 10-10-10) I bought from you in the fall. The foliage is growing, about 10-12”, not tall just long leaves that lay on top of the soil. I wanted to know when would I fertilize this spring? I plan to buy what I need from you..
Please advice! Thank you ,
Linda Dowling
You can start to fertilize now and apply fertilizer every 10-14 days until 1 week before the scapes start to come in June. You can purchase our Organic garlic fertilizer which can be broadcasted over the garlic which is the easiest. This fertilizer is also good for other allium crop as well as the rest of your garden. If you also wanted to add a foliar feeding to your garlic and your entire garden, I would recommend our Purple Cow Fertilization package which will fertilize your garlic and your entire garden for the season. Purple Cow is a great multipurpose for your entire garden, so you can decide which one will work for you over all.
Would bone meal or 20-20-20 be a good fertilizer for garlic in the Spring.
Oh my! Overkill. If you want to use this, please dilute as much as possible and use little of it. cut the recommended amount down to 1/4 of 10 gallons. Just to give you an example of how strong this stuff is, I used a general purpose 13-13-13 for corn. mixed with compost, top soil and peat moss with the basic blood and bone meals. They were layered with bone and blood first thinking I was going to let the 13 settle and spread out more. Nope. Dead within a week of them getting into that fertilizer. That was almost 2 years ago and I’m just starting to see new growth in that area as nothing could grow there. For garlic, try chicken manure if you don’t have bone and blood meals. I have also found garlic and onions grow well with pepperchinnis, any peppers really, and almost any herb. I use green onions to keep pests away and the garlic is set up as a border around the whole garden. I also have 3 other spots for the garlics within the garden itself. Basil and garlic close together, not planted in the same area, in pots, also work well for protecting against pests. Now, I’m in the south so I don’t know if this will help wherever you are. Bottom line, it would be best not to use the 20-20-20 unless you’re doing industrial size, but if you want to, use as little as possible as this stuff is really strong.
On a side note, look into electroculture and playing classical music at 432 hz. Post results. If possible, do a controlled bed vs a non control group. I’m doing it for tomatoes and watermelons. What I am witnessing… is incredible.
I ordered your garlic fertilizer today to fertilize my spring garlic coming up. As you know here in Wisconsin they are still predicting snow for this coming weekend. My question is when I fertilize, do I need to uncover any of my garlic. I have it pretty heavily mulched with straw right now, but I do see it peeking up through the straw. It sounds like it’s a dry fertilize that I just spread out, and it’s supposed to rain next week so I could then let the rain water it in? As a small backyard gardener, some of the info is a little overwhelming and confusing to me. Thank you for your help. I love that I can support Wisconsin farms.
Hello. I noticed no one has answered so here it goes. If its powder, I would lift the much as much as you can, spread the powder out and replace mulch. that will spread once you water and continue til it runs out. if you can dilute the powder in water, do it this way as the water will carry the solution down to the dirt and on. If it doesn’t break down good enough in water to a point where its clogging your watering can, its prob best to just throw the fertilizer underneath the mulch and water that way. I have switched to a liquid fertilizer for this very same reason. My front lawn has a garden in it. I wish I would say small but my front yard is a decent size, hence the garden. I couldn’t take the time to go through all the mulch and throw powder under it so I tried diluting it, nope. finally I said #$#^% it, and I just spent the money for liquid stuff. Must faster as all I do is put it in the distribution tank and that’s that. That tank is new. made it myself. lol
I am new to the garlic world and didn’t realize that I should have fertilized it. My garden is rich in compost and donkey manure. Would this be enough to get me through until harvest? And is it too late? Thanks for any help! Oh, when should I expect to harvest my fall garlic? 4th of July time?
sounds like you’re doing fine. The compost should be good for a start. Fertilize one more time, like 12 days ago, not too late. Do a liquid fertilizer. if you can dilute chicken manure in water and maybe some superthrive, not at the same time, a day or two apart, it should catch it up. Stop using it 2 weeks before harvest. Let us know how it goes.