Garlic has a place in Alaska gardens

Cooking with garlic is all the rage these days. Many Alaska gardeners associate this bulb with the warmer climates of the world, places like Italy and California, and consequently don't give growing garlic much thought. Oddly enough, though, garlic does very well here and happens to be one of the easiest things to grow in Alaska. There are two times of the year to plant garlic: really early spring, and fall.

It's a couple of weeks early yet, but you have to order now if you want to bring in some of the bulbs available from Outside sources. There are some terrific kinds of garlic out there and some wonderful collections too. You won't regret the investment, and you'll have enough left over after you harvest them next summer to plant again without having to reorder.

A few places to look for garlics are Nichols Garden Nursery (nicholsnursery.com), Territorial Seeds (territorialseed.com), Bobba-Mike's Gourmet Garlic (garlicfarm.com) and Seed Savers Exchange (seedsavers.org ). Read the descriptions. See what they suggest for colder climates. Order some. Trust me, you can grow it.

While Outside sources have interesting and unusual selections, you can also buy supermarket garlic and give it a try, as you have little to lose. Note, however, that these are sometimes sprayed with a sprouting inhibitor to prevent them from sprouting while on display or in storage. Do yourself the favor of at least looking at some of the online offerings so you know what to look for or aspire to when it comes to supermarket offerings.

All you need to do is break up the garlic bulb into individual corms. Then you bury single corms, pointed end up, in about three inches of soil. It should be good, rich soil, full of organics, which means lots of compost or humus. These are bulbs and will rot if the soil does not drain well. You can plant corms about four inches apart in beds or use large pots which can be buried in the ground for the winter. I always suggest a few in your perennial gardens as garlics develop interesting flowers.

That is all there is to planting garlic. No need to water, fertilize or pamper in anyway whatsoever. It's like planting spring bulbs.

You probably can plant now, but I would wait until it gets colder. Early September is better. Mulch with about four or five inches of grass clippings or straw, enough so that once the ground does freeze, the mulch will keep it frozen. You may want to have some extra clippings in the garage to apply after things get really cold in order to keep things that way.

Finally, it's often reported that if you replant the biggest cloves from your crop year in and out, you can develop some killer strains of garlic. I have not tried this, but so goes the folklore, enough so that there may be some truth in the stories.

Next, several folks have asked me to identify a wonderful shrub with big, white, fragrant flowers that are just now in the process of dropping.

Normally when I get a question like this, I ask for a picture, but there is only one plant that fits this description -- Philadelphus coronaries, commonly referred to as the sweet mock orange.

It's a wonderful shrub. If you don't have one, get several. They are out of this world when it comes to fragrance and flower count. Best of all, moose haven't really discovered them.

There are all sorts of hybrid sweet mock oranges available when you can find them. Some are more profuse bloomers, some have simple, single flowers and others complex flowers. All, as far as I know, have the characteristic, orange blossom fragrance that makes the plant so special. The flowers last for two weeks or more.

Keep an eye out for mock oranges at local tree and shrub lots. Buy as many as you can afford when you do see them, as they sell out quickly. Add a mycorrhizal mix to the roots when you replant.

Finally, when is the best time to divide rhubarb, raspberries and ligularia?

Spring is the best time because the plants are still dormant and nothing is disturbed. However, if you must divide yours because of a move or some other important reason, go ahead.

Ligularia and rhubarb usually need dividing every six years or so, but it is best to divide earlier so you don't risk the plant punking out on you.

Jeff Lowenfels is a member of the Garden Writers Hall of Fame. You can reach him at teamingwithmicrobes.com or by calling 274-5297 during "The Garden Party" radio show from 10 a.m. to noon Saturdays on KBYR AM-700.