It can also be grown in a large container. It can be sown directly in the ground, or started off in small pots if you have heavy soil. Garlic is usually planted in late autumn or early winter (although some cultivars can be planted in early spring).

Grow garlic in a warm, sunny spot, in fertile, well-drained soil that doesn't get too wet in winter. There's also elephant garlic, which bears giant, mild-flavoured bulbs, which you can grow for a lighter garlic taste. If left to develop on the plants, you can harvest and plant the bulbils, but it may take 2-3 years to form a decent bulb. It is best to remove the scape as soon as it appears (use it in stir fries) so that the plant will divert its energies into producing a larger bulb. This straightens out as it matures, to carry a head of tiny clove-like bulbils. Hardneck types will often produce a curling flower stalk or ‘scape’. They are generally hardier than softneck types and can be grown throughout the UK. Hardneck varieties Hardneck garlic has fewer cloves per bulb – usually 10 or less. Softneck garlic is less tolerant of prolonged cold temperatures and is therefore best suited to growing in mild southern counties, though it can be grown elsewhere with protection in the winter. It has a white, papery skin, stores well and rarely produces a flower stalk. It produces the greatest number of cloves per bulb – up to 18.

Softneck varieties The most common type in supermarkets. There are two types of garlic to grow: softneck garlic and hardneck garlic. The certified garlic bulbs are sold at garden centres or online. It's an easy crop to grow – it's sown from garlic cloves as opposed to seeds. Home-grown garlic takes up little space and requires hardly any effort to get a good crop. Garlic needs a long growing season to do well, and autumn through to early winter is the perfect time to sow so that plants develop roots and shoots before the heavy frosts.

Red button ginger cold hardy