How to Grow Garlic Sprouts in a Container

Layer 1 inch of river rocks or gravel in the bottom of a 5-gallon container to provide proper soil drainage. Alternatively, you can use one 7-inch-diameter planter per sprouted garlic clove.

Fill the container three-quarters full with a 1-to-1 mixture of potting soil and compost. The compost provides the garlic with adequate nutrients to grow large bulbs.

Poke the sprouted garlic into the soil, 4 inches deep, with the sprouts facing up. Ideally, you should plant sprouted garlic during fall after the first frost for the largest, best-tasting cloves. If you are planting multiple cloves in one container, leave about 7 inches of space between each to allow the bulbs room to grow. Sprinkle 3 to 4 inches of mulch over the potting soil to protect the garlic as it grows.

Leave the garlic unattended until spring when the snow has melted, if applicable. Keep an eye on the garlic, watering the soil if it dries completely. They are ready to harvest when 50 percent of the garlic’s leaves have wilted and turned yellow.

Loosen the soil around the garlic bulbs with a spoon when you are ready to harvest them. Lightly pull them from the soil and lay them in a warm area that does not receive direct sunlight or rain. Leave the garlic in this area to dry for one to two weeks. Treat them gently to avoid bruising the cloves.

Clip the roots of the garlic to 1/2 inch long with sharp pruning shears, and brush the dirt off the bulbs. Allow the garlic to rest for another week before braiding them into clusters or cutting off their stems. If you would like to grow more garlic, save the largest cloves to plant next fall.