top of page
Artichoke Garlic Group
Mid Season | Medium Storing | 10-20 cloves
The Reliable: The best all-rounder loving most climate zones, is happy in a braid, and has a clean taste
Artichoke garlic is named after the appearance of the clove layer pattern which looks a bit like an artichoke flower bud. This garlic is a popular mid-season softneck garlic and is considered to be the most adaptable garlic for all soil conditions and climate zones. This garlic group produces many cloves per bulb and can be plaited despite its wide leaves. It is often cropped commercially due to its high number of cloves, no scape removal required and its relatively long storage life. It grows best in a mild to cool winter climate​.
This is a non-bolting garlic type meaning it does not send up a flower stalk known as a scape unless under stress. Under stress it does produce neck bulbils and a large, wide scape. This garlic has a mild simple vegetative flavour.
Characteristics
Clove & Bulb Appearance
The bulb is normally a flattened oblong globe shape, generally white to tan in colour with purple blotches on the bulb wrapper (skin) particularly in cold climates. The bulbs contain between 10-20 cloves. The bulbs are generally larger than the other softneck silverskin group. Artichoke garlic normally has multiple layers of cloves.
There are often at least ten plantable cloves per bulb. The remaining inner cloves are small, tall and angular thus being less suitable as planting stock. The clove skin is often a dull, matt-white or cream colour.
The outer cloves are typically plump square, flattened wedge with three flatish sides shaped with long tails on the outer cloves. The inner layers of cloves are tall, thin, roughly square sided or angular. Artichoke garlic typically stores for 7-9 months in ideal conditions.
Bulbils
This softneck garlic generally does not send out a scape (flower stalk) unless it is stressed particularly by cold weather. Under stress they can produce clusters of neck bulbils on the lower half of their pseudostem. Those plants with bulbils will not be able to be plaited. Their skins are normally purple to dark purple in appearance and extra large (7-12mm) in size - the largest of any garlic.
Leaves & Scapes
Artichoke garlic has more sideways leaf growth compared to the silverskin softneck group. The leaf is very wide compared to other garlic groups and they tend to have leaf-flop halfway up. Thus they can be described as having a more horizontal spreading leaf appearance. Plants can tend to lie over close to harvest time.
The leaf is a yellow-green colour. This garlic is easy to distinguish from silverskin and other garlics as it has a visible pink arrow at the stem of each leaf and is a softneck. Under stress (particularly with chilly spring weather) this garlic can (rarely) produce a large scape with a purple blotch.
bottom of page