WHY BUY LINABELLA'S GARLIC SEED

Garlic Seed can be purchased from many places.  But what people are finding out is that you want to buy your garlic from a reputable farmer and grower.   We have been planting only our own garlic seed for the last 3 years and we grow all of our garlic using non-chemical fertilizers.  We only use organic fertilizer, fish fertilizer as well as lime on our garlic. 

Last year there was a major shortage of garlic.  The reason was that some farmers purchased seed from outside of the country that was meant to be used for food grade.  They planted it and then re-sold the seed stock, spreading the diseases to other farmers.  What ended up happening is some farms lost entire crops of garlic to the Bloat Nematode.  You think that your garlic looks great you keep fertilizing it and investing time weeding and when you pull it, it still looks ok.  Then you hang it to dry and it actually starts to break down and rot.  There is nothing worse than investing your time in something to have it go bad. 

Here is a link to an article on the bloat nematode.  This is a serious disease that can be passed on with the purchase of garlic seed.  You cannot see it and cannot smell it.  It is not visible to the naked eye.  It can be spread to all areas of your farm and garden on your feet and hands as well as air.  Once it is in your land, it attacks other species of plants. 

Please keep this in mind when you are ordering your seed garlic.  Buy your seed from someone that has been planting their own seed for a while and not bringing seed in especially from other countries. 

http://blogs.cce.cornell.edu/cvp/files/2010/09/Managing-bloat-nematode-in-Garlic-FINAL.pdf

Above is a link that explains the bloat nematode. 

We have not found Bloat Nematode on our garlic.  We rotate our crop every year and plant cover crops in the off years.  In addition, our seed garlic field retains adequate moisture to minimize the risk of the bloat nematode as it does not like the moisture.