Garlic · Vancouver, Washington, United States
When to plant garlic in Vancouver
Main outdoor window
27 Sep - 11 Oct
The window this page is built around.
Timed from last spring frost
4 April
In Vancouver, on your chosen risk.
Ready to pick
25 May - 24 Jun
If you plant at the start of the window.
The average last frost. Half of all years are later than this.
Step by step in Vancouver
Each window is a range, not a single day. Earlier in the range buys you a longer season; later in it buys you a safer one.
Plant cloves
27 Sep - 11 Oct
Four to six weeks before your first frost, so roots form before the ground cools.
Harvest
25 May - 24 Jun
Garlic through the year
Against the frost risk in Vancouver
Why these dates
Plant four to six weeks before your first autumn frost so roots establish before the ground cools. Hardneck types require a genuine cold period and will not bulb properly in mild-winter climates.
Survives -20C under mulch. Hardnecks need six to eight weeks below 10C to form cloves, making this a crop that actively requires winter.
Garlic are anchored to the first autumn frost rather than the last spring one, so the planting window on this page counts backwards from the end of the season in Vancouver instead of forwards from its start.
The median frost-free season here is 218 days, against 240 to 270 days to maturity for this crop counted from sowing. That margin is what decides whether a late sowing is worth attempting.
Also in Vancouver
Other vegetables to time
Growing garlic in Vancouver
When should I plant garlic in Vancouver?
Aim for 27 Sep - 11 Oct in an average year. If you would rather not gamble on the weather, wait until 15-29 Sep - by then frost has finished in nine years out of ten.
When will garlic be ready to harvest in Vancouver?
Expect to start picking around 25 May - 24 Jun, based on 240 to 270 days to maturity from the planting date calculated for this location.
How much frost will garlic tolerate?
Survives -20C under mulch. Hardnecks need six to eight weeks below 10C to form cloves, making this a crop that actively requires winter.