Description of Elephant Garlic

Garlic is a constant ingredient in a huge number of dishes of everyday and festive cuisine. Many refuse to use it because of the sharpness of taste. He has a great alternative – an amazing vegetable, which in Russia and some European countries is called “rockambol.” Its real name is elephant garlic.

Elephant Garlic

Its size is really amazing – the weight of one head is about 200 g., grown on fertile soils – up to 400 g. One clove weighs 50-80 g., they are 4-6 in the head.

Characteristics of the variety

Elephant garlic is called onion-garlic, but in fact it is a perennial plant from the onion family, a close relative of onions -Porea. The homeland of this amazing culture is the Balkans. In the 40s of the 19th century it was brought to America. Now the largest global supplier is Peru. It is found in the natural environment in southern Europe, in the Crimea and the North Caucasus, in Central and Southeast Asia.

Description of the plant

Externally, the plant resembles leeks. Height 1.5-2 m (depending on growing conditions). The flower stalk is crowned with a lilac spherical inflorescence.The seeds usually do not ripen, but at the bottom of the bulb children form, which can be used to cultivate the crop.

Despite the great similarities between related plants, leeks and elephant garlic have many differences:

• Elephant garlic has a semi-sharp taste and a light garlic aroma;
• it is grown to form a head, not a white stem;
• the size of the head: it hardly fits on the arm of an adult.

A common mistake made by gardeners is to grow on the basis of agricultural technology about garlic, but it is necessary on the basis of leek.

Useful properties

Elephant garlic has a yield that is 6 times higher than the yield of an ordinary crop. It has many positive properties:

• contains B vitamins, as well as C, E, K, PP;
• has antioxidant properties;
• it essential oil has antibacterial, fungicidal, hypotensive, tonic effects.

Application

Doctors recommend elephant garlic for infectious and viral diseases. Its use helps to cope with anemia, problems of the gastrointestinal tract, blood vessels, is used to heal infected wounds, as well as in anthelmintic therapy. , appetizers.

Features of agricultural technology

To obtain a good crop, you need to take into account such features:

• the soil must be well moistened, especially at a depth of 3-5 cm (mulching helps to preserve moisture);
• a significant increase in yield is ensured by the introduction of organic matter, nitrogen-containing fertilizers.

Removing the flower stalk does not lead to a significant increase in yield. At the same time, the number of “children” is increasing, therefore it is recommended to carry out such a procedure to obtain a large amount of planting material. Some of them remain in the soil and clog the organized plantings. The growing season of elephant garlic is 110-120 days.

Planting

Elephant garlic can be planted in autumn and spring. Winter forms a larger head. However, in regions with cold winters, autumn plantings may freeze.

Suitable soil is loose, well-groomed. The site should be open, illuminated.

With proper care, a good harvest

Autumn planting

The soil for planting winter elephant garlic begins to be prepared in August or September. They bring rotted manure (20-50 kg per 1 sq. M), and in its absence compost in much larger quantities. If the soil is loamy, it is made more light by adding sand and peat.However, acidity is controlled: it should not be higher than 6.5-7.5. To reduce acidity, dolomite flour or lime powder is scattered around the area.

Before planting, the teeth are treated with special preparations for cultures of this family or in a potassium permanganate solution (12 hours).

One of the methods of landing in the trench. Their sizes: depth – 30 cm, width – 20-25 cm. Compost is laid in a trench. Teeth are planted on it and sprinkled with soil. This natural fertilizer can be supplemented with superphosphate or wood ash. Mulching with leaves of garden trees will protect the planting of elephant garlic from frost, and take root in a timely manner. And with short-term warming, the plants will not germinate. The recommended time for planting is 3-4 weeks before frosts.

Spring planting

Planting material for spring planting begins to be prepared in advance: within three weeks “ harden “at a temperature of 3-5 ° C, then” green “, keeping in the light for about a week.

The soil is prepared in winter. Before landing, it is either re-dug up or well loosened. Landing is carried out early enough, as soon as the soil is stable and warms up to 6 ° C. The teeth are deepened by 10-15 cm (depending on size). The beds mulch.

Care

After the emergence of seedlings, the beds of elephant garlic are watered with settled cold water so as not to provoke fungal diseases.Drying of the earth and its compaction should not be allowed, therefore watering and cultivation should be regular.

The plant is responsive to the crusts. It is recommended to fertilize the culture three times a season: after emergence (seed ammonium nitrate); during the active build-up of green mass (organics and urea solution); at the time of formation of the heads (phosphorus-potassium fertilizers or wood ash).

The most common plant pests are onion flies and root mites. To combat them, use a mixture of ground pepper, ash and tobacco chips (process at least 2 times a month).

Storage

Harvesting is carried out, depending on the region , from the second half of August until mid-September. A sign of ripening are yellowed and laden leaves. Elephant garlic is perfectly stored until February, subject to several conditions:

• you need to choose dry weather for harvesting;
• after digging it is dried in a warm, ventilated place, avoiding direct sunlight within a month;
• the next stage is the cutting of dried leaves (leave a stump of about 5 cm), while the bottom is not cut.

Store in boxes on soft bedding from straw or dry sawdust. Shelf life: at a temperature of 8 ° C – about 5 months, at room temperature – three.

Conclusion

So far, the cultivation of elephant garlic has not yet become widespread in the post-Soviet space; this is also facilitated by the difficult care and exactingness of the plant. It is difficult to find high-quality planting material.

The described properties and simple maintenance can make elephant garlic one of the favorite among gardeners and gardeners.In addition, the plant is very decorative during the flowering period.