How to store garlic: rules for storing garlic at home for the winter until spring, how to keep it fresh longer in an apartment or cellar so it doesn’t dry out, how to braid hair?

foto46488-1 Garlic is a popular culinary vegetable that places great demands on the conditions it is kept in.

In order to preserve a large harvest and make substantial reserves, the choice of storage method must be approached very responsibly.

How to properly store garlic for the winter until spring at home? Expert advice and master classes will help with this.

Preparing for storage at home for the winter until spring

foto46488-2 In order for garlic to store well for a long time, it must be properly harvested and prepared.

Vegetables must be harvested when they are fully ripe.. Heads that are not ripe will not be stored well, and overripe ones will begin to crumble into separate slices.

Harvest in dry weather and dry in the open air. After this, the garlic is sorted out, putting aside the damaged heads.

Further processing depends on the form in which the vegetable will be stored.. If you intend to store it in braids, then the stem should be left 40 centimeters long; for assembling into bunches, 20 centimeters is enough. In all other cases, leave a tail of about 2 cm.

General rules

Compliance with the conditions for proper storage of garlic allows it to sit for a long time, maintaining its beneficial properties.

The basic content rules include the following:

air humidity ranging from 60 to 85%;
protection from drafts and direct sunlight.

The temperature requirements at the place where the crop is stored are determined based on the type of garlic. For summer keeping, the temperature is +16-20?C, for winter – about +2-4?C.

Garlic should not be stored together with other vegetables and fruits. The exception in the neighborhood is onions.

Tell me what temperature to store garlic at. this article on how long vegetables can be stored and under what conditions - this.

How to keep it fresh longer?

The garlic harvest can be preserved in various ways. To choose the optimal one, it is necessary to build on the following factors:

possibilities for organizing storage conditions;
crop condition;
volume of vegetables;
personal preferences.

How to store garlic in winter until spring planting, read Here.

Fridge

foto46488-3 If you have a small supply of garlic in a city apartment, you can use the refrigerator. It maintains a cool temperature and provides protection from the sun.

To prevent fresh heads from deteriorating, it is necessary to provide air access. The easiest way to do this is to place the garlic in paper bags.

Polyethylene is not suitable for these purposes, as condensation will begin to accumulate under it, and the garlic may disappear. In addition to whole heads, you can keep peeled slices in the refrigerator. Read more here.

Freezer

Freezing garlic will make it possible to have a semi-finished product that is convenient to use throughout the year. Even damaged vegetables are suitable for harvesting.

The heads are cleaned and disassembled into slices. Damaged areas are cut off. You can freeze whole cloves or chopped ones..

To make it convenient to use the preparation, the garlic should be packaged in portions, so as not to defrost it more than is necessary for one preparation. Read about freezing garlic here.

In the apartment

When organizing storage of supplies in a city apartment, it is necessary to ensure suitable conditions. A box on the balcony or a pantry can be dedicated for vegetables.

It is important that the conditions in the designated area meet all requirements. If they are violated, the shelf life of the product is significantly reduced.

In an apartment, garlic can be stored well even in ordinary glass jars covered with cloth or paper on top. A good result is obtained by storing garlic heads, layers of which are sprinkled with flour, sawdust or salt.

Read about storing garlic in salt Here, in vegetable oil - here.

Cellar

Organizing the storage of vegetables in the cellar is a good option if it is possible to maintain appropriate temperature and humidity levels in the room. In the cellar, garlic can be stored in ventilated boxes, baskets, braids, nets, and even in bulk.

other methods

In addition to keeping garlic fresh, it can be dried or preserved. Such approaches make it possible to process even very large volumes of crops.

Conservation

Garlic can be pickled and salted. It is used for preservation, both as a main component and to enrich the taste of other vegetable marinades and pickles.

Drying

foto46488-4 Drying garlic makes it possible to prepare the spice in a compact form.

Lack of drying - loss of a significant part of the nutrients. The advantage is compact storage and ease of use. Before drying, the garlic must be sorted, peeled, and damaged areas cut off.

There are several ways to dry garlic. To speed up the process, the slices can be pre-cut into plates.

The longest option is drying in natural conditions. This method does not require any resources. But the quality and drying time will depend directly on weather conditions. The process proceeds fastest in warm weather.

Alternative options that significantly speed up the process are the use of an electric dryer or oven.. In both cases, the temperature should be set low, around +50? C. In order for the vegetable to dry evenly, it needs to be stirred periodically.

As a result of drying, thin, brittle plates are obtained. They can be ground immediately or chopped in batches as needed.

Ground spices can be stored in jars or bags. To prevent possible caking, you can add a small amount of salt to the ground garlic.

In purified form

When preparing garlic for future use in various ways there may be an excess of already peeled segments left. It will be more difficult to preserve them in this form - deprived of protective scales, they will quickly dry out and deteriorate.

Peeled slices can be kept for several weeks in a paper bag in the refrigerator in the compartment intended for vegetables. You can also preserve the teeth in oil.

To do this, perform the following steps:

Place clean garlic cloves in a dry jar.
Vegetable oil is poured on top.

Store the resulting product in the refrigerator on a shelf.With this approach, not only the garlic is preserved, but also an oil enriched with its aroma is obtained, which can be used for preparing main courses, dressing salads, etc.

If there is too much peeled garlic, then recipes with freezing, drying and canning will come to the rescue.

Read about storing peeled garlic Here And here.

Deadlines

foto46488-5 The shelf life of garlic depends on the condition of the crop, maintenance conditions and harvesting method. Also it is necessary to take into account the type of vegetable - spring or winter.

If all storage rules are followed, a summer vegetable can last until spring, a winter vegetable – up to 4 months. After this period, garlic begins to lose its beneficial qualities and deteriorate.

Cleaned cloves can last for several weeks in the refrigerator. Frozen and dried vegetables can last until the next harvest. Preservation is designed for use before harvesting a new crop.

Solving the problem of vegetable sprouting

Germination of garlic can occur when the vegetable is stored for a long time, and when it is kept in unsuitable conditions. If vegetables have started to grow, they need to be given attention.

To prevent deterioration and loss of beneficial properties and taste, the heads must be disassembled into slices and cleaned. The sprouted part is cut off. The cloves can be placed in jars and filled with oil. If the supply of garlic is large and not all of it germinates, then the sprouted one should be used first.

If germination of harvested garlic is detected, you should pay attention to the conditions under which it is kept. They may need to be adjusted.

Features for winter and spring varieties

All grown garlic can be divided into two main types: spring and winter.The latter is planted in late autumn, before frost sets in. Spring is planted in the spring. His harvest ripens later.

Characteristic	Type of garlic
Characteristic	Winter	Spring
Landing	Autumn	Spring
Kernel	Large	Weakly expressed
Dontse	Wide	Small
Root system	More powerful	Less powerful
Size of slices	Big	Mostly small
Number of slices	Small	More often – large
Shelf life	3-4 months	Until spring
Harvest time (for the middle zone)	End of July - beginning of August	Mid August

Read about storing spring garlic in this article, winter - in this.

Is it possible or not to be kept together with onions?

foto46488-6 When storing vegetables, it is important to consider their compatibility. Garlic is very demanding in this matter.

It can only be stored together with onions if all rules for storage conditions are observed. Both onions and garlic can be braided or sent to the vegetable store in boxes and nets.

If space allows, they are stored in a separate container. Garlic sent for storage can be sprinkled with onion peels. Read more here And here.

What is the best way to deal with the seeds?

A separate problem is the preparation and preservation of planting material. Most often, slices are used for planting, but the vegetable can also be sown with seeds. The latter option is suitable for multiple propagation of the variety.

After ripening, the seeds are carefully cut off and collected for subsequent storage. It is most convenient to keep the collected material in a cardboard box in a barn or other room with an air temperature of 18 to 20? C. Seeds can be planted in winter or spring. Read more here.

What to do if the cloves turn yellow?

When storing garlic, various problems can manifest themselves over time.One of the possible situations is yellowing of the lobules.

Drying out

The cause of the problem in most cases is improperly organized storage.. Keeping the vegetable in a very dry room can lead to yellowing, which is why the heads begin to rub moisture, change consistency and color.

To prevent the garlic from drying out, treating each head with an iodine-oil mixture will help. To do this, mix 0.5 liters of vegetable oil with 10 drops of iodine. Everything is mixed. An alternative option is to cover the heads with melted paraffin.

Bacteriosis

Bacteriosis can also lead to discoloration. It can appear not only during storage, but also during the growth stage. This situation occurs due to bacterial infection.

Simple rules will help prevent the development of bacteriosis:

Garlic crops should not be grown in the same area year after year.
It is not advisable to plant crops with a later ripening period near garlic.
Phosphorus fertilizers must be added to the soil.
It is not advisable to trim unripe tops.
If necessary, use insecticides to control bacterial vectors.

Container options

How to store garlic is determined by the volume of the harvest and where exactly the vegetable will be stored in the winter. For the conditions of a city apartment, a box on an insulated loggia and glass jars can be adapted. A small amount of winter garlic can be kept in paper bags in the refrigerator.

For a private house with a cellar and attic space, the choice of options is much wider. The following options are possible:

ligaments;
in a braid;
in boxes;
in boxes;
in baskets;
in grids;
in fabric bags.

Read about storing garlic in glass jars in this article.

How to braid hair?

Weaving garlic braids is a method that allows you to compactly store the vegetable harvest. An additional plus is that all heads are within reach, they are easy to inspect, and possible damage will be immediately noticeable and easily repaired.

This video will show you how to braid garlic:

Recommendations

The following can help preserve your garlic reserves: expert advice:

Only whole ripe heads without damage can be sent for fresh storage.
It is advisable to store winter and spring varieties separately.
It is recommended to use winter garlic first, then summer garlic.
A vegetable infected with rot and mold is not suitable for food.

Conclusion

Proper organization of garlic storage allows you to have this vegetable on the table all year round. By combining different preparation methods, you can have a variety of options that won’t get boring.