Listing description
Detailed description
With a history of human use of
over 7,000 years, garlic is native tocentral
Asia,[4] and has long been a staple in the Mediterranean region, as well as a frequent seasoning in Asia,
Africa, and Europe. It was known to Ancient
Egyptians, and has been used for both culinary and medicinal purposes.[5]
Description
Allium sativum is a bulbous plant. It grows up to 1.2 m
(4 ft) in height. Its hardiness is USDA Zone 8. It produces hermaphrodite flowers.Pollination occurs by bees and other insects.[6]
Origin and major types
Allium sativum grows in the wild in areas where it has
become naturalized. The
"wild garlic", "crow garlic", and "field
garlic" of Britain are members of the species Allium ursinum, Allium vineale, and Allium oleraceum,
respectively. Identification of the wild progenitor for common garlic is made
difficult by the sterility of its many cultivars which may all be descended from the
species, Allium longicuspis,
growing wild in central and southwestern Asia.[7][8][9]
In North America, Allium vineale (known as "wild garlic" or
"crow garlic") and Allium canadense, known
as "meadow garlic" or "wild garlic" and "wild
onion", are common weeds in fields.[10] One of the best-known "garlics",
the so-called elephant
garlic, is actually a wild leek (Allium ampeloprasum), and not a true
garlic. Single
clove garlic
(also called pearl or solo garlic) originated in the Yunnan province of China.
European garlic
Subspecies and varieties
There are two subspecies of A. sativum,[11] ten major groups of varieties, and hundreds
of varieties or cultivars.
·
A. sativum var. ophioscorodon (Link) Döll, called Ophioscorodon, or hard necked
garlic, includes porcelain garlics, rocambole garlic, and purple stripe
garlics. It is sometimes considered to be a separate species, Allium ophioscorodon G.Don.
·
A. sativum var. sativum,
or soft-necked garlic, includes artichoke garlic, silverskin garlic, and creole
garlic.
Cultivation
Garlic is easy to grow and can
be grown year-round in mild climates. While sexual propagation of garlic is
indeed possible, nearly all of the garlic in cultivation is propagated asexually, by planting individual cloves in the
ground.[8] In cold climates, cloves are planted in the
autumn, about six weeks before the soil freezes, and harvested in late spring.
The cloves must be planted at sufficient depth to prevent freeze/thaw which
causes mold or white rot.[12] Garlic plants are usually very hardy, and
are not attacked by many pests or diseases. Garlic plants are said to repel rabbits and moles.[3] Two of the major pathogens that attack garlic are nematodes and white
rot disease,
which remain in the soil indefinitely after the ground has become infected.[8] Garlic also can suffer from pink root, a
typically nonfatal disease that stunts the roots and turns them pink or red.[13]
Garlic plants can be grown
closely together, leaving enough space for the bulbs to mature, and are easily grown in
containers of sufficient depth. Garlic does well in loose, dry, well drained
soils in sunny locations, and is hardy throughout USDA climate zones 4–9. When
selecting garlic for planting, it is important to pick large bulbs from which
to separate cloves. Large cloves, along with proper spacing in the planting
bed, will also improve bulb size. Garlic plants prefer to grow in a soil with a
high organic
material content,
but are capable of growing in a wide range of soil conditions and pH levels.[8]
There are different varieties
or subspecies of garlic, most notably hardneck garlic and softneck garlic. The latitude where the garlic is grown affects the
choice of type as garlic can be day-length sensitive. Hardneck garlic is
generally grown in cooler climates; softneck garlic is generally grown closer
to the equator.[14][15]
Garlic scapes are removed to focus all the garlic's
energy into bulb growth. The scapes can be eaten raw or cooked.[12][16]
Production trends
Garlic is grown globally, but China is by far the largest producer of garlic,
with around 20 million tonnes (44 billion pounds) grown annually, accounting
for over 81% of world output. India (4.6%) and South Korea (1.4%) follow, with
Egypt (1.2%) on fourth place and the United States (where garlic is grown in
every state except for Alaska) in
ninth place (0.8%).[17] This leaves 11% of global garlic production
in countries that each produce less than 2% of global output. Much of the
garlic production in the United States is centered in Gilroy, California, which calls itself the
"garlic capital of the world".
PRICE
$1463.33/KG
OR $665.15/IB
For more information:
mobile: +2348039721941
contact person: emeaba uche
e-mail: emeabau@yahoo.com
website: www.franchiseminerals.com
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