Elephant Garlic
4-8 cloves, not a true garlic but in the leek family, will tend to crack apart afer excessive drying, huge cloves, mild pungency, bulb size potential approximately 3-5"" diameter, up to approximately one pound bulbs (dry weight) are attainable with perfect growing conditions. Our largest cloves which we are shipping fall 2002 are averaging 7-9 per lb., HUGE!
California Early Garlic
10-14 cloves per bulb, artichoke type, flat white appearance, size potential approximately 2 1/2 - 3" diameter, pungent, storage through year end, great for dehydrating. (a.k.a. Susanville and Early Italian Purple). We can have provide this one "cracked" (whole bulbs made into individual cloves) mechanically so that it is ready to plant. This process reduces waste by 15% and requires immediate planting. Available as 50lb. sacks only, made to order in September - October.
California Late Garlic
12-18 cloves per bulb, artichoke type, a flash of hot garlic pungency, shiny white appearance, nearly round porportions with the typical pyramid shape on top, size potential also 2 - 2 1/2"" but under same conditions as California Early slightly smaller size, clove skin color varies from light pink to white to light brown, long storage through March, best variety for braids, commonly grown in California for storage and peeling garlic. (Aka. Silverskin, Silver Rose) Very similiar to Oregon Blue, Lorz Italian, and Western Rose.
Chinese Garlic
9-15 cloves per bulb, earlier than California Early by 2-4 weeks - the absolute first garlic to harvest, bagel shaped, size potential over 2-3+" diameter, big yields. Skin will tend to crack open after garlic is dried for 1 to 2 months, appearance white with faint, sometimes non-existant pink-purple stripes (more pronounced striping in cooler climates), generally easy to peel, moderate pungency, medium to large size cloves, not for extremely cold winter zones (Montana, North Dakota, Alberta through Manitoba). This variety does prefer areas with dry springs so that the last few irrigations can be controlled for a quality harvest. A good choice for early whole plant harvest with green tops in winter / spring.
Grey Shallots
Gourmet unique shallot flavor, growing approximately 10-15 shallots around the bulb for next years harvest. Moderated sized bulbs that you won't be able to do without one you get started. Superior flavor in the shallot world.. Even seed company executives praise its virtues yet they have not yet been able to duplicate this vegetatively propigated gem in th allium world. A very reliable non-bolting shallot for fall or spring planting. We only sell them in the fall or until sold out.
French Red Shallots
Vegetatively propigated from France. By the time we received our seed from France in fall 2004 it was too late to plant in Oregon, so 100% of this years production is from California. Good produvctive, and maturing much earlier than Grey Shallots by 2-4 weeks (matures with CA Late and Music garlic when fall planted, closer to Grey Shallots when Spring planted) This is one of several elongated red elongated-round, reddish-purplish bulbs with brownish-red skin shallot strains shipped throughout the world by growers of true shallots from France, but in our case, we are growing without applying the sprout inhibitors which are commonly used to enhance shelf life and inhibit sprouting. Hot pungency when eaten raw, and excellent shallot flavors when cooked.
German Garlic
White bulbs, 6-8 large cloves, vigorous, similiar in many ways to Music but not as sweet, also a northern growers favorite (a.k.a. Premium Northern White, German White, German Porcelin).
Music Garlic
4-7 huge generally uniform blunt shape easy to peel cloves, appearance often mistaken for medium sized elephant garlic, but with sweet pungent flavor, and it is durable to handle (won't easily crack apart). An excellent vigorous, dark green, upright grower, we believe our best variety for consistent production of 2 1/2 to 3"" (occasional 3 1/2"" diameter) white bulbs with a hint of pink on bulb wrappers, an all around excellent grower friendly variety. Discovered by Al Music of Ontario, Canada in the 1980's on a trip to his homeland Italy. Music is one of the first varieties to send up its seed stem, and one of the first to mature of the hardnecks. This is our favorite for gourmet & farmstand sales, and take home garlic baking/roasting!