How to Plant Garlic in the Fall with Kiddos

If you have never considered planting garlic in your garden, now is the time! Come along with us as we share our annual fall tradition of planting garlic with our 6 kiddos.

woman holding garlic cloves over kitchen countertop

Garlic is a gateway plant. You might be thinking, what the heck are you talking about Kirsten? How is garlic a gateway plant? It’s simple… once you start planting it, you’re addicted for life. If you’re anything like my crew, we cook with garlic daily. Once we figured out how easy it was to grow, the kids and I were committed.

There’s no such thing as too many garden beds.

Rewind to fall of 2021. Pierce had finished our backyard extension and he gave me the green light to build our garden beds. I had done sun mapping in our yard to determine the best location, we had already moved the teenage chickens to their new coop and run, and I was ready to start building our eighteen raised bed frames.

Eighteen 6’x3’ raised bed frames may have been a bit ambitious, but Pierce will be the first to tell you that I’m not capable of doing anything on a small scale. Hailing from a large family and being the oldest of six girls truly taught me if you’re going to do anything, you need to go big. I was determined to grow fresh herbs, vegetables, and fruit for our expanding family. I had a plan for every square inch of those eighteen beds.

Our kiddos helped every step of the way.

raised garden beds with garlic chicken coop and run

Did I forget to mention I was pregnant at the time with baby #5 and had just entered my second trimester when we started our build? Our oldest son helped us build and fill the beds while the little kids helped with their toy tools. They would move dirt with their shovels and help rake the soil with tools three times their size. Kids can do hard things!

Garlic planting with 6 kiddos is easier than you think.

Fast forward to October 2024 and we just finished planting our fall garlic. For our crew, planting fall garlic is the first fall activity in our home. It signals the changing of the season and with it our outside chores dwindle. We are no longer protecting our plants from the high desert heat. The kiddos and I prepare our garden for a long winters rest while we focus our energy on busy homeschool tasks. Before we know it, winter will melt away and tender shoots will emerge from the soil signaling spring is around the corner.

girl planting garlic in raised bed during fall with hair blowing in the wind

Steps to Take Before Planting Fall Garlic

If you’re new to gardening, there are a few steps you will need to take before planting fall garlic in the ground.

Find your average first and last frost date. Determining your first frost date will give you a planting window for your garlic cloves. You can find that information here based on zip code. Garlic should be planted 6 to 8 weeks before your first frost date. We try to plant our garlic at the end of September or beginning of October before our first frost. We also have established the best time to plant by keeping a gardening journal over the years and talking to experts at local nurseries.
Determine your gardening zone. We are in zone 7a and experience a hard freeze with snow every winter. We take our climate into account when choosing what variety of garlic to plant. You can find your gardening zone at the USDA’s website.
Find a reputable seed company to buy garlic. This year we purchased from Baker Creek’s Rare Seeds. You can find their varieties here.
Determine where to plant. Garlic likes full sun. Make sure you choose a place in your yard that receives 6 to 8 hours of sunlight a day. We like planting in our raised beds, but other members of our family like planting them around their yard, food forest style. I would love to try this in the future and section off part of our backyard for a food forest.
Prepare your soil. Make sure to prepare your soil a few weeks before planting with compost or fertilizer. Our favorite resource currently is the local nursery in town. They sell local product that fits the bill. A compost pile is on our to do list with the kiddos this next year. Stay tuned for that future project!

Our Favorite Seed Planting Tool

boy using seed planter to plant garlic in fall in backyard with raised garden bed

If you’re working with kiddos or are concerned with proper spacing, we recommend this seeding square. The spacing holes, depth tool, and planting guide takes the guesswork out of getting your seeds in the ground. The kids follow the colored instructions and direct sow their seeds with minimal assistance.

Chickens vs. Garlic

Our garlic harvest this summer was much smaller due to chicken damage. Our chickens are escape artists and they love dirt baths, not a great combination for the raised beds closest to their run. Heartache is part of gardening and there were many days I wanted to cry over exposed bulbs. In true homeschooling mom fashion, we turned our frowns upside down (millennial mom) and made the loss a life lesson. Sometimes we work very hard nurturing plants to grow, for months at a time, and a chicken or squirrel can rip apart our plans. Loss is part of the gardening process, but the kiddos all agree that it’s worth the effort.

Our future goal is to have a self-sustaining garlic crop. If we take the largest heads of garlic from this year’s harvest and replant the cloves next year, we will be able to grow year after year without purchasing new bulbs. While this wasn’t possible this year, we’re thankful for reputable seed suppliers when we’re in a pinch.

Can you plant store bought garlic?

It is not recommended planting garlic from the store. The garlic variety from the store may not be suited for your zone. Additionally, you don’t know what has been used on the garlic and it could carry pests or diseases.

Why do I plant garlic in the fall?

We plant our garlic in the fall about 4-8 weeks before our first hard frost date. This gives the garlic time to get established before it goes into a dormancy period over winter. Planting garlic cloves in early spring will result in a much smaller bulb.