Elephant ail certainly looks like unconstipated ail – only in the gargantuan economy size . While it ’s actually more closely relate to leeks than garlic , it may have gotten its name from its appearing . Elephant garlic is used in many of the same ways as regular ail . However , it isgrownand stored in a interchangeable fashion to garlic .
Why “Elephant” Garlic?
The plant we get laid as elephant Allium sativum ostensibly do to the US with Czechoslovakian or Yugoslav immigrant . Although sometimes called “ French Garlic , ” there is nothing to support that it originated in France . Nor was it created by Luther Burbank , as some stories evoke . Nichols Garden Nursery was patently the first to call it elephant garlic – prior to that the most mutual name was giant Allium sativum .
Regular vs. Elephant Garlic
Here ’s how elephant ail differs from regular ail :
Growing Elephant Garlic
Like its namesake , elephant garlic prefers high-pitched soil fertility and adept drainage . Grow a covert harvest and work it into the soil the season prior to plant . tote up lots of well - rotted leaf mold , ripened manure or compost to establish humus and fertility . Since elephant Allium sativum is fall - planted , you must pay particular attention to drain during the wintertime months to foreclose abide water system .
How to Plant Elephant Garlic
Elephant garlic typically has four to six large cloves . part the clove and check that they are planted with the pointed ending facing up . Cloves should be plant in the crepuscle , four to six inches cryptic . If you live where winters are frigid , add together an additional four to six inches of mulch or straw on top of the planted clove tree . outer space cloves about eight inches apart .
Harvesting Elephant Garlic
Like hardneck ail , elephant garlic sends up a ejaculate still hunt ( scape ) in late give . These scapes must be cut off as soon as the flower buds show , in club to promote Syzygium aromaticum development . The scapes can be eaten unfermented , wintry , pickle or dry out . Once most of the leaf stalks have dried to yellow and start to turn browned , pluck or dig the elephant garlic bulbs .
Curing Elephant Garlic
To encourage undecomposed storage and keep rot , elephant Allium sativum must becuredafter harvest home . Immediately abbreviate off the stalk and trim the roots . dry out the Allium sativum in a warm place with good air circulation , out of lineal Lord’s Day . In most climate , elephant garlic will take two to three weeks to cure . In humid area , you may take to move the cloves indoors and use a fan .
