Here in zone five, we’re about to get almost 10 inches of snow. Who knows, but we’re gonna get a lot of snow here in the beginning of the second week of November. And I’m so psyched, because skis are kind of my favorite thing next to singing and seeds. So I’m thrilled. But if you haven’t already planted your garlic yet, you might not be thrilled. But here’s the thing. Don’t worry, you haven’t missed the boat, you’re golden. If you’ve already planted your garlic and shallots, you’re golden, if you haven’t. And here’s why. Cold is not the limiting factor for garlic; cold desiccating winds are another story. So cold is never going to kill garlic. I’ve actually planted garlic with my dear friend in the middle of January. And we were a little literally kind of shoving our trials into his mostly frozen soil during a thaw. And planting hundreds of cloves. And it wasn’t the best. It wasn’t the worst, it wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t the worst. And when that garlic came up, it was beautiful. And I never would have guessed that it didn’t have the most ideal conditions for planting. On the other hand, I mean, it wasn’t ideal for us. But it was totally fine for the garlic and for the shallots. So just keep that in mind, even if it snows in November, even in December. The good news, the bad news, our climate is changing. And it doesn’t get as cold for as long here in zone five. And so especially early in the season we’ll very likely be getting these big snowstorms that come through but the soil is still warm. I mean it’s not warm enough that we want to bathe in it , but it’s not frozen, even close. And so the sun is melting it from above the warm Earth is melting it from below and these first significant snowballs are very likely just going to dissipate before too long. So yes, it’s mid January that you is really kind of a cutoff point here in zone five for getting garlic and shallots in the ground. But you really want to aim for Halloween, then Thanksgiving is your ideal window when it’s most comfortable for you to get out there and you’re not risking the greens growing too much before the snows really fall. But yeah, even if you get inches and inches and inches of snow and you’re skiing with me and you haven’t planted your garlic and you haven’t planted your shallots yet. Fear not. You don’t need to make a hubbub just like those blue jays in the hedgerow. You haven’t missed your boat. It’s no longer super comfortable for you perhaps, but your garlic and your shallots won’t be daunted. So suit up, get out there. Plant them when the snow melts plant them when the sun shines just plant them, and you will be so amazed, and you are what you eat and when we eat garlic and jalapeno eating some of the most tenacious cold hardy plants on the planet. I’m so fortunate. You are so fortunate. We are so fortunate. Forget out there. Enjoy the sun. Enjoy the skis. Enjoy the shallots. Until next time, don’t be shy.
