Keter Manor Outdoor Apex Double Door Garden Storage Shed (6 x 8ft)
A durable and stylish beige and brown garden storage shed perfect for storing garden tools, equipment, bikes, and outdoor essentials. Weather-resistant, low maintenance, and ideal for any garden or allotment setup.
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Removing Garlic Scapes for Bigger Cloves
If you’re growing hardneck garlic, you might notice a curly, spiral flower stalk—the “scape”—emerging in late spring or early summer. Should you cut it off? For bigger, better garlic bulbs, the answer is yes! Here’s why and how to remove garlic scapes, plus tips for using these gourmet garden treasures in your kitchen.
What Is a Garlic Scape?
- A garlic scape is the flowering stem that curls up from the center of hardneck garlic varieties.
- Scapes appear 2–4 weeks before harvest, usually in late May or June (depending on your climate).
Why Remove Garlic Scapes?
- If left, scapes draw plant energy away from the bulb—meaning smaller, less developed cloves.
- Removing scapes redirects energy back to the developing bulb underground, maximizing your harvest.
- Scape removal can increase bulb size by 20–30%!
When to Remove Garlic Scapes
- Wait until the scape forms a full curl or two (but before it straightens out).
- Usually 2–3 weeks after the first appearance.
- Check your patch every few days in early summer to catch them at the prime moment.
How to Remove Garlic Scapes
- Use sharp, clean scissors or garden shears.
- Snip each scape as low as possible without damaging leaf stalks—ideally, just above the leaves.
- You can snap them off by hand, but cutting is gentler and neater.
- Collect all scapes—they’re edible and delicious!
What To Do With Garlic Scapes?
- Eat them! Their mild, sweet garlic flavor makes them a prized delicacy in early summer cuisine.
- Slice raw for salads.
- Pesto: Blend with nuts, cheese, olive oil, and lemon.
- Stir-fry, grill, pickle, or chop into eggs, dips, or soups.
- Freeze for winter use.
After Scape Removal: Next Steps
- Continue regular watering and weeding.
- Watch for yellowing lower leaves as your cue for harvest time (typically 2–4 weeks after most scapes are removed).
Wrapping Up
Removing garlic scapes is a quick and crucial job for growing big, robust bulbs—plus, it gives you one of the earliest gourmet harvests from your garden. Snip those curls, savor their unique flavor, and look forward to the biggest garlic crop yet!