Sauk County Gardener: Garlic and daffodils and mums – oh my!

“I see recipes calling for one clove of garlic. One clove of garlic is not enough for any recipe unless it’s a recipe for, ‘how to cook one clove of garlic’ – even in this case use two.” — Unknown

Even though the days are getting shorter and the nights cooler, there is still time to plant. This week I’m planting garlic, daffodils, and chrysanthemums.

Fall is the time to plant garlic: Six to eight weeks before the grounds freezes or around the first couple of weeks of September. This gives the cloves time to grow roots and get established before winter. I would have liked to have planted mine a little sooner but with all the rain this is the first chance I’m going to have. I use a lot of garlic in my cooking and canning so it’s worth it to try and still get some in the ground.

Before planting garlic, you need to determine what kind of cultivar you want - hardneck or softneck. Hardneck garlic is milder in flavor, has more varieties, and is more cold hardy than softneck. Softneck, on the other hand, tends to have higher yields, stronger flavor and it stores better long term. Remember, however, it’s not as cold hardy as hardneck garlic. Wait to divide the bulbs until just before planting to prevent any disease and then plant the cloves about 4-6 inches apart, 2-3 inches deep. If they are planted too shallow, they may sprout this fall. Also, keep in mind that garlic has a shallow root system, so it is happiest in a well-prepared garden bed with loose, crumbly soil. After the ground is frozen, mulch the garlic with 4-6 inches of straw.

Last year a fellow Master Gardener Volunteer gave me three different kinds from her coveted garlic stash for me to plant. This year, I’m only planting a variety calledGerman Red. It’s a hardneck variety and is touted as being spicy with a robust flavor and easy to peel. I was able to find some nice sized bulbs at the Baraboo Farmers’ Market at a very reasonable price. To learn more about planting garlic and its other delicious allium cousins, visit the UW Madison Division of Extension’s Learning Store and check out their guide entitled “Growing onions, garlic, leeks, and other alliums in Wisconsin,” You can find it at https://cdn.shopify.com/s/files/1/0145/8808/4272/files/A3785.pdf.

I’m also planting chrysanthemums that I picked up at the Baraboo Farmers’ Market. Mums planted at this time of year can be “hit or miss” for surviving the winter, but I always plant them as they do a wonderful job of adding color to garden at the end of the season. I’ve had success with my fall-planted mums surviving the winter, but it’s usually when I either planted them in very early fall or we have a mild Wisconsin winter. (If you plan ahead, you can purchase them at your favorite local nursery in the summer, plant them, and tend to have a better survival rate.) I take advantage of the effort I expend planting my fall mums and plant some daffodils in the same hole. They are both planted about same depth so if my mums don’t survive the winter, I’ve at least planted a few spring blooming bulbs to enjoy next spring. Simply dig a hole for your daffodils, check the recommended depth, plant them pointy side up, cover them with a little soil and then plant the mum on top of them. Make sure the mum is planted the same depth as it was in the container and then backfill with soil. Water them and enjoy. Next spring, the daffodils will come and potentially so will your mums for another round of blooms next fall. I’ve done this for a number of years, and my daffodils always come up and many times, so do my mums. If your mums survive the winter, the spring growth will hide your daffodils as their leaves die back.

You can do the same with other fall-planted flower bulbs they are planted the same depth of your mums. Deer and rabbits like to eat my blooming tulips, so I tend to plant more daffodils than tulips. Squirrels and chipmunks also like your fall-planted flower bulbs. If they see that the ground has been disturbed from your freshly planted bulbs, they may think they’ve hit the motherlode of some other critter’s winter stash and dig up your bulbs. Sometimes, they even take a bite or leave the bulb just dug up and laying on the soil. To deter them, try to make the ground look undisturbed by spreading mulch or leaves over your planted bulbs.

As you preserve the last of your garden harvest, remember to use research-tested canning recipes. I love to gift my family and friends with preserved produce from my garden, but trust me, no one wants the gift of botulism for Christmas. To find tested recipes and information on safe food preservation, visit the website for the National Center for Home Food Preservation at https://nchfp.uga.edu/ or the UW Madison Division of Extension’s Learning Store’s guides on Food Preservation at https://learningstore.extension.wisc.edu/collections/food-preservation-a....

If you have the weekend free, check out the Fourth Annual Hill & Valley Exploration Tour. This celebration of rural living is Sept. 19, 20, 26 and 27, and offers a view of 12 different sites in western Sauk County. For a complete schedule of events and information on each vendor visit their website www.explorehilland valley.com.

Remember to contact the University of Wisconsin Madison Division of Extension Sauk County staff if you have any gardening questions. Please send an email to haley.weisert@saukcountywi.gov or call the University of Wisconsin Madison Division of Extension Sauk County office at 608-355-3250.

Jeannie Manis is Sauk County Master Gardeners Association (SCMGA) president.