Garlic — Vegetables

Allium sativum

Full sun, light watering — hardy in most of the UK.

Photograph of Garlic — iNaturalist / GBIF

Plant out: Oct
Harvest: Jul

Sun: Full sun
Water: Low
Difficulty: Demanding
Hardiness: H4
Season: winter
Height: 10–50 cm
Spacing: 50 cm
Pets: Toxic to pets
Bee friendly: Bee friendly

Grows well with

Beetroot — Garlic are named as a good neighbour for beetroot. Mixed planting is held to let different crops help each other, partly through scent that puts pests off.Rose — Planting garlic near roses is an old trick: the smell is supposed to keep greenfly off. It is passed on as advice rather than shown in a trial.Strawberry — Plant garlic among your strawberries, cut it down and spread the chopped leaves over the bed every couple of weeks: the scent is meant to keep greenfly off the fruit.Pea — Peas and garlic are a classic bad pairing - keep the garlic in another zone.Potato — Garlic are named as a good neighbour for potatoes. The thinking is that mixed planting lets different crops help each other, partly because their scent puts feeding pests off.

Growing notes

Grows to 0.1-0.5 metres. Space about 10-50cm apart. At its best in winter.

Toxic to pets

For people the hazard is the skin: handling garlic can irritate it or trigger an allergic reaction, so wear gloves if your skin reacts and wash after handling. Garlic is toxic to dogs and cats, damaging their red blood cells, so keep bulbs and scraps out of reach. For a bad skin reaction get medical advice; if a pet eats garlic, contact a vet.

→ NHS 111 for a person; your vet or the Animal PoisonLine for an animal