Garlic grows into a tall, 3 feet (90 cm) high plant with long, flat leaves measuring approximately 1 inch (25 mm) across and 12 inches (30 cm) long. From the center of the plant a willowy, round flower stalk thrusts upward above the grayish leaves, the flower that appears being a compact collection of mauve-tinted white petals. These blossoms, either fresh or dried, are sometimes used in floral arrangements.
History and mythology
Garlic has been known for so many thousands of years that its origins are rather obscure. It is thought to have come first from south-eastern Siberia, from whence it spread to the Mediterranean countries where it became naturalized. It was known in antiquity, Homer having mentioned it several times. Other classic writers who recorded it were Pliny, Virgil, and Horace, and later, Chaucer and Shakespeare. Garlic was included in the diet of the ancient Egyptians, Romans, and Greeks and the knowledge of its excel¬ lent qualities circulated down through the centuries and into different countries.
Cultivation
Mature garlic bulbs are made up of tightly clustered bulblets or cloves, each being sheathed in a pearly, papery skin. The whole bulb is “tissue- wrapped” by nature in the same type of covering, which must be removed so that the bulbs can be broken away from each other. For planting purposes, do not remove the skin from the cloves themselves.
Spring is the best time for growing garlic. Separate the bulblets and, keeping them upright with the root end downward, press them into drills 2 inches (5 cm) deep into soil which has previously been dug deeply and thoroughly turned over with the addition of well-decayed manure if the ground is poor. Keep the cloves 6 inches (15 cm) apart, cover them with soil, and water well. Soon the spear-like gray-green leaves appear, then come the flower stalks, each with a long, swelling bud at the end. As the stalks lengthen and the buds grow plumper, they eventually burst into flower.
Harvesting and processing
Harvesting of the bulbs usually takes place about six months after planting the cloves, when the flowers are fading and the leaves are yellowing and beginning to shrivel. Dig the bulbs, shake them free of dirt and plait several together with the remaining leaves. Hang the plaited garlic in a dry place where air is circulating. If the bulbs are exposed to a moist atmosphere they will mildew. When the bulbs have hardened, any remnants of foliage can be cut away and the knobs stored in a dry and airy container, such as an open-weave basket, until needed.
Various uses
Culinary
Garlic is indispensable in many types of cooking. Not only does it impart its own unique aroma, thus heightening the taste and savor of the dish, but it aids the digestion as well. Before using the bulblets, or cloves, for eating, their transparent skin should be peeled away. There are many who feel that garlic is an acquired taste, and prefer only the merest whiff of the bulb’s pungent scent. Therefore it is more acceptable for them to rub a salad bowl, a saucepan, or a casserole dish with a cut clove of garlic, rather than to use whole cloves in their food. Eventually, if, and when, one becomes addicted, the amount of garlic may be increased gradually until the ideal quantity for each person is reached. There are others who can never have enough garlic, and for them one of the most delicious foods is aioli, originating from provincial France. It is a thick, strong-tasting, golden mayonnaise made with eggs, olive oil, and crushed garlic, to be eaten with peeled, boiled potatoes and mopped up with bread, or served together with a bowl of shelled hard-boiled eggs, or to have as a sauce to accompany globe artichoke, avocados, asparagus, boiled fish, steamed chicken, or snails the combinations are many and varied (see recipe page 248). In any case, garlic is accepted as a universal flavoring, whether in recognizable quantities or in discreet amounts. It is known in the dishes of the Mediterranean countries. Garlic is known as “toomah” in Morocco, where it is used to flavor many dishes. It goes with lamb, pork, veal, beef, tomatoes, eggplant, zucchini, m curries, in Chinese cooking, in salads, certain sauces, in mayonnaise, and in garlic bread. Commercially it is used to flavor salts, and it is available in dehydrated flakes, or as a powder.
Medicinal
Garlic has remarkable medicinal properties, and is known, because of its penetrating quality, to be a natural and powerful antiseptic. It contains the vitamins A, B, and C, as well as copper, sulfur, manganese, iron, and calcium, which make it valuable as a tonic for the cells and glands. People were bidden to eat it to cleanse the intestines, to help lower high blood pressure, to expel worms, to ward off colds, to ease chest congestion, and to alleviate rheumatism, while the raw juice was put on sterilized swabs during World War I and applied to wounds to prevent them turning septic. Garlic taken in capsule form is recommended when travelling overseas to help avoid infection. It is said to be beneficial to elderly people suffering from hardening of the arteries and general aging symptoms, while many people with sinus trouble and hay fever have been helped by taking garlic regularly.
Cosmetic
Garlic’s contribution to cosmetic care is the work it does on the inside, as it has a remarkable effect on clearing the complexion. If the taking of garlic either in capsule form or eating the raw cloves is persevered with for a few days, a pimply skin will become quite clear and unblemished.
Companion planting
Garlic and roses benefit each other in the garden, garlic helping to repel aphids. But garlic near peas and beans will inhibit their growth. Pieces of garlic put amongst grain is an old European method of protecting it against weevils. A garden spray made from freshly crushed garlic cloves is a natural deterrent against many pests, and there are now garlic sprays already made up, which are available in specialty garden shops.
