Garlic - How much garlic do I need to fill my Birdies raised bed with garlic?

To determine the quantity of garlic needed to plant in a Birdies bed, follow these steps:

1. Measure Your Birdies Bed

Measure the length and width of your Birdies bed.
Example: If your bed is 4 feet by 8 feet, you have 32 square feet of planting area.

2. Decide on Planting Density

Dense Planting: 5.5" to 6" between garlic cloves.
Traditional Planting: 6" to 8" between garlic cloves.

3. Calculate Planting Holes

Dense Planting:
- Calculate the number of rows: Width of Bed (in inches)6\frac{\text{Width of Bed (in inches)}}{6}6Width of Bed (in inches)
- Calculate the number of columns: Length of Bed (in inches)6\frac{\text{Length of Bed (in inches)}}{6}6Length of Bed (in inches)
- Total planting holes = number of rows × number of columns.
Traditional Planting:
- Calculate the number of rows: Width of Bed (in inches)8\frac{\text{Width of Bed (in inches)}}{8}8Width of Bed (in inches)
- Calculate the number of columns: Length of Bed (in inches)8\frac{\text{Length of Bed (in inches)}}{8}8Length of Bed (in inches)
- Total planting holes = number of rows × number of columns.

4. Determine Number of Garlic Heads

Look at the average number of cloves per garlic head on the product page of the garlic type.
Example: If a variety has 10 cloves per head and you need 100 cloves, you would need 10 heads.

5. Example Calculation

Bed Dimensions: 4 feet by 8 feet.
Dense Planting:
- Width in inches: 48 inches.
- Length in inches: 96 inches.
- Rows: 486=8\frac{48}{6} = 8648=8
- Columns: 966=16\frac{96}{6} = 16696=16
- Total planting holes: 8×16=1288 \times 16 = 1288×16=128
- If average cloves per head = 10: 12810=12.8\frac{128}{10} = 12.810128=12.8 heads (round up to 13 heads).
Traditional Planting:
- Width in inches: 48 inches.
- Length in inches: 96 inches.
- Rows: 488=6\frac{48}{8} = 6848=6
- Columns: 968=12\frac{96}{8} = 12896=12
- Total planting holes: 6×12=726 \times 12 = 726×12=72
- If average cloves per head = 10: 7210=7.2\frac{72}{10} = 7.21072=7.2 heads (round up to 8 heads).

6. Offset-Diagonal Planting Pattern

To maximize space, plant cloves in an offset-diagonal pattern.
Start by planting a row with equal spacing and stagger the next row so the cloves are positioned in between the cloves of the previous row.

By following these steps, you can accurately estimate the number of garlic heads needed to plant your Birdies bed, ensuring optimal use of space and achieving a good harvest.

Visual Representation:

Dense Planting:

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Traditional Planting:

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