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How to grow garlic

Frost-hardy · Onion family

When to sow and plant

  • Plant (autumn) 1 September – 31 October

Based on: average for Germany, last frost 19 April, safe from 6 May

Planting calendar for your area
Where the dates come from

The weeks come from our sources; the dates use the average frost in Germany. Enter a German postcode to get dates for your area.

  • Plant (autumn): September to October (fixed months from a German source, not tied to frost) (DLR Gartenakademie RLP: Aussaat- bzw. Pflanzzeiten von Gemüse)

Good and bad neighbours

Disputed · 1

Gardeners’ lore, not proven · 2

  • StrawberryLore: good· D

    Garlic is said to keep aphids off strawberries; this is not proven.

    D: Tradition, named by at least two sources

    Strawberry

  • Sugar snap and snow peaLore: bad· D

    Traditionally seen as bad neighbours; no proven reason.

    D: Tradition, named by at least two sources

    Sugar snap and snow pea

Crop rotation

After the onion family, leave the bed free of it for at least 4 years.

  • The same species should go back to the same spot after a break of 3 years at the earliest.
  • Example: grown here in 2026, again from 2031.

At a glance

Family
Onion family (Amaryllidaceae)
Frost
Hardy, tolerates frost
Spacing (row × plant)
30 × 15 cm (12 × 6 in)
Plants per m²
22.2
Life cycle
Annual
Harvest
After 180–210 days from planting

Spacing according to RHS Grow your own: Garlic. Other sources: 38–61 × 10–15 cm (15–24 × 4–6 in) (Cornell Home Gardening: Growing Guide Garlic).

Questions and answers

How far apart should I plant garlic?

30 × 15 cm (12 × 6 in) (row × plant), according to RHS Grow your own: Garlic.

What grows well next to garlic?

White cabbage, Red cabbage, Savoy cabbage, Cauliflower, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Kale, Kohlrabi, Chinese cabbage, Pak choi: Disputed (X), Strawberry: Gardeners’ lore, not proven (D) and Sugar snap and snow pea: Gardeners’ lore, not proven (D).

How long a break do garlic need in the same bed?

After the onion family, leave the bed free of it for at least 4 years. The same species should go back to the same spot after a break of 3 years at the earliest.

More from the onion family

Sources

Show 13 sources
  1. UMD Extension: Vegetables for Spring and Fall Planting
  2. Cornell Home Gardening: Growing Guide Garlic
  3. RHS Grow your own: Garlic
  4. DLR Gartenakademie RLP: Aussaat- bzw. Pflanzzeiten von Gemüse
  5. NC State Extension Gardener Handbook, Ch. 16, Table 16–4
  6. Südtiroler Bauernbund: Merkblatt Fruchtfolgen im Gemüsebau (Oktober 2022)
  7. Landwirtschaftskammer Schleswig-Holstein: Fruchtfolge im Garten (Gartenmerkblatt, 2020)
  8. GBIF Backbone Taxonomy (über die GBIF-API, species/match)
  9. BUND: Mischkultur – Gute und schlechte Nachbarn (August 2026)
  10. Gartenakademie Rheinland-Pfalz (DLR): Übersicht – Kultur verschiedener Gemüsearten im Hausgarten (o. J.)
  11. Miao, Gao, Jiang, Wang 2013: Effects of Intercropping of Cabbage and Garlic on Major Pests and Arthropod Community in Spring Cabbage Fields. J. South China Agric. Univ. 34(3): 352
  12. Sharma et al. 2022: Potentiality of intercropping in managing Diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella). Indian J. Agric. Sci. 92(8): 1010–1014
  13. RHS (Guy Barter): Three ways to use companion planting

Retrieved on 23 October 2026. Facts in our own words, one source per value.