Why We Grow Our Own Garlic

Interesting article from Australia on garlic. Microgardener article
The highlights of the article, besides how to grow, is the majority of garlic in the world is produced in China using methods we would rather like to avoid.  As we begin our spring planting and I watch the garlic cloves we planted last October begin to poke through the mulch we laid to protect it through the winter, I think why doesn't everyone grow their own.   In the northeast it is really an easy and fun crop to grow.  You plant the cloves in the fall spread a layer of mulch to protect it in the winter and about mid July you pull it out of the ground.  It is one of our favorite tasks to pick on the farm.  There is nothing like pulling out beautiful heads of garlic all started by a single clove.  We grow more than enough to stock us for the year ( we go through about 3 heads a week) and to sell by the road.  We grow about eight different varieties, softneck and hardneck.  After reading the above article I am more glad than ever that we grow our own.  It really does matter where your food comes from.  It is even better when you grow it yourself.