SANDPOINT IDAHO
All Seasons can deliver bouquets, live plants and flower
baskets across town or around the world. We are your 1-800 FLOWERS local fulfilling florist. Click here for selection.
For direct orders, call (208) 265-2944
IF ROMANCE IS IN THE AIR LET US HELP.
We are a full service floral design center and can help with just the right bouquet to make her heart flutter. Congratulations to all newly engaged couples! If you've 
set a 2011 wedding date, let us dream with you and create the most beautiful floral pieces for your special day.We have experienced florists available to guide you in planning the perfect wedding flowers that are uniquely yours. Make an appointment to meet with one of our floral designers at (208)2652944 or drop by the shop.
ALL SEASONS GARDEN AND FLORAL
OPEN MONDAY THROUGH SATURDAY FROM 9AM TO 5 PM. WE ARE LOCATED JUST AROUND THE CORNER IN KOOTENAI ON HIGHWAY 200 EAST.
THE GARDENER'S CORNER
FREE WORKSHOPS
NOVEMBER 19TH:Harvest Centerpiece Making-1p.m. We will teach techniques and ideas for Thanksgiving Centerpieces.
DECEMBER 14TH AND 17TH: (held twice) Christmas Centerpiece Class-1p.m.We will teach techniques and ideas for holiday centerpieces.
Centerpiece class attendees pay only for the floral stems and items used to make their take-homepiece.
GROWING GARLIC
SOIL PREPARATION: Deep till or spade beds, working in well-composted manure in the soil before planting. Rotate your crops and do not plan on planting garlic or any member of the onion family in the same areas three years in a row. Soil should be well-drained, fertile, loose ground. Garlic does not like wet feet, so if your soil tends to be wet in the winter you might plant garlic in raised beds.
PLANTING: The garlic we offer grows best when fall-planted. Dates vary from mid-September through November, depending on your climate. Usually plant one month before the real cold weather as this will allow time for initial root development and will strengthen the young plants for over-wintering. Water beds a few days before planting if the soil is very dry. This encourages early root growth before winter.
Break open your garlic bulbs and loosen them into individual cloves. Select the firmest, largest looking cloves for planting. Discard any cloves with signs of decay, irregularities or damage.
After deciding on the best spacing pattern for your garlic patch, plant the cloves, root-end down one inch deep (that is to the first knuckle on your thumb) by simply pressing the clove into the soil. A light raking over the entire bed will cover the cloves. Where the wind blows it can get very cold so you may want to plant the cloves deeper. 2” to 4” is usually the recommended maximum depth.
SPACING: Garlic requires a minimum 4” to 8” spacing. In a 3 ½ foot raised bed, we make three evenly spaced rows and plant the cloves 4”-6” apart. Single rows may be planted with plants 4” apart and a minimum 8” – 10” between rows. Double rows can be created 6” apart with 6” between plants in a staggered or “triangulated” pattern. Leave 15” – 20” between double rows.
Across the surface of a raised bed you can create a “triangulated” pattern leaving 6” between plants.
MULCHING: Loosely apply a good layer of hay, straw or grass mulch immediately after planting to protect the young plants through the winter. In the spring, most of the plants will have no trouble growing up through the mulch, while a few may have to be “helped” by pulling the mulch back a bit.
FERTILIZING AND WATERING: In the spring, water the garlic as you would any leafy green vegetable, keeping the soil moist, but not too wet.
The best fertilization for garlic is well-worked manure or cover crop residues in the soil prior to planting. However, early in the spring, when the leaves are growing, green and supple, garlic responds well to foliar sprays of fish or seaweed emulsion every 10 days or two weeks. By the time summer heat arrives, the garlic stops actively growing leaves and begins bulbing. Nitrogen fertilizer is no longer applied after this point.
“POPPING TOPS” OR CUTTING THE SEED STALK: The “hard neck” types, including Romanian Red and German Red, will grow a woody flowering stalk which will curl 2 or 3 times. Just cut the stalks near where they emerge from the leaves when the flower head has risen above the curls. Early top-popping will help increase the size of the bulb.
The “soft neck” types, Sicilian and Italian, usually do not develop a woody stalk and are the best braiding garlics.
HARVESTING: Harvest after the leaves have begun in brown but while there are still 5-6 leaves remaining on the plant. Pull a few plants to check for full bulb division and that there is a good wrapper around each clove.
In good soil the plants might be pulled by hand, but we recommend loosening the soil with a spading fork. Brush off the soil lightly and loosen it completely from around the roots. Please do not try washing garlic bulbs with water. Drying is an essential part of the curing process. It is important to remove freshly dug garlic from the direct sunlight and it should be taken immediately to a dry storage area.
CURING: Choose a shed, garage or open barn with good air circulation for curing the garlic. The stalks can be loosely tied in bundles of 8-12 and hung by nails from rafters or walls. Spreading garlic out in single layers on screens, drying racks or slatted shelves is also good. Keep the bulbs exposed to the air. Garlic stores longer if it is cured with its stalk intact.
Remember, good air circulation is absolutely essential for curing. Garlic should be cured a minimum of three weeks and up to two months. If it is cool and humidity is high, you may want to use heaters and fans to keep the air circulating. After curing, you may trim the roots, cut off the stalks ½” to 1” from the bulb, and gently clean the bulbs a bit more with a bristle brush. Do not knock off the protective layers of papery skin.
STORING: Always store garlic loosely in netted sacks or hung in bunches with good air circulation. Avoid direct sunlight. Ideal conditions are 35-50 degrees Fahrenheit with a relative humidity of 60%. With good storage, garlic can keep well for six or eight months.
Our Gardeners at All Seasons will gladly answer any of your gardening questions.
Come see us at:
31831 Highway 200 East, Sandpoint Idaho,
or call(208)265-2944
