Garlic with an Autumn Lettuce Follow-up
Autumn-planted garlic comes out in July, just in time to sow a crisp autumn lettuce crop.
Season timeline
- Plant the garlic cloves
- Harvest the garlic
- Sow the autumn lettuce
- Harvest the lettuce
- Clear the bed
Bed layout
Crops in this bed
Step by step
- Plant the garlic clovesOct
Plant cloves 5 cm deep, pointy end up, before the ground freezes.
- Harvest the garlicJun–Jul (next year)
Lift the bulbs when the lower leaves yellow and cure them in an airy, shaded spot.
- Sow the autumn lettuceAug (next year)
Rake the bed level and sow an autumn lettuce variety directly into the freed rows.
- Harvest the lettuceSep–Oct (next year)
Cut the heads as they firm up, before heavy frosts arrive.
- Clear the bedOct (next year)
Remove the last lettuce and leftover leaves so the bed goes into winter clean.
Harvest calendar
| Crop | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Jan (next year) | Feb (next year) | Mar (next year) | Apr (next year) | May (next year) | Jun (next year) | Jul (next year) | Aug (next year) | Sep (next year) | Oct (next year) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Garlic | Garlic: Jun (next year) | Garlic: Jul (next year) | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Garden lettuce | Garden lettuce: Sep (next year) | Garden lettuce: Oct (next year) |
The bed over the season
- Garlic · Sowing
- Garlic · Growing
- Garlic · Growing
- Garlic · Harvest
- Garden lettuce · Sowing
- Garden lettuce · Harvest
Why this combination works
Garlic occupies the bed over winter with practically no care and comes out in July, freeing the bed exactly when a fast autumn lettuce sowing still has time to mature. Alliums also leave the soil relatively clean of the pests and fungi that trouble leafy greens.
Tips
Use certified planting garlic, not supermarket bulbs. Do not water garlic after May or the bulbs rot. Sow the lettuce in a shaded spot in hot Augusts, or germination suffers. Cover late lettuce with fleece when frosts threaten.