How to Grow Garlic in New Zealand
Updated June 2026
Garlic is one of the most satisfying crops in the New Zealand garden. You plant a single clove and it returns a whole bulb. The classic Kiwi rule of thumb is to plant on the shortest day and harvest on the longest, which lines garlic up beautifully with our winter-to-summer growing season. Get the timing and the cloves right, and the rest is mostly patience.
Garlic needs two things from the season to bulb up properly: a spell of cold over winter, and lengthening days through spring. That is exactly what our shortest-day-to-longest-day tradition delivers. This guide covers the timing for your region, how much seed garlic to buy, which New Zealand varieties suit where you live, and how to grow fat, well-keeping bulbs.
Garlic planting calculator and timing
1. How many cloves do I need? Cloves are planted 15 centimetres apart.
2. When do I plant, and which type?
What it looks like as it grows
Position and soil
Garlic wants a sunny, open spot with at least six hours of sun a day. The single most important thing is drainage, because garlic sitting in cold wet soil over winter is prone to rot. If your soil is heavy, grow it in raised beds or mound the rows up.
Work in plenty of compost or well-rotted manure before planting. Garlic is a hungry crop over its long season and rewards rich, free-draining soil. Aim for a pH around 6.0 to 7.0. Rotate garlic away from where you grew onions, leeks or garlic last year to keep soil-borne problems down.
Planting
Just before planting, gently break the bulb into individual cloves, keeping the papery skin on each one. Plant the largest, healthiest cloves and save the small inner ones for the kitchen, as bigger cloves grow bigger bulbs. Push each clove in pointy end up, about 3 to 5 centimetres deep, so the tip sits just below the surface.
Space cloves 15 centimetres apart in rows about 25 to 30 centimetres apart. Water in well, then mulch lightly to suppress weeds and hold moisture. Use the planting calculator above to work out exactly how many cloves and bulbs you need for your bed.
Spacing
Stick to 15 centimetres between cloves. Crowd them and you get small bulbs, because each plant needs room and light to size up. The rows themselves can be 25 to 30 centimetres apart, which gives you easy access for weeding through the season.
Watering and feeding
Keep the bed weed free, as garlic competes poorly with weeds. Water steadily through spring when the bulbs are sizing up, then ease right off as harvest approaches so the bulbs can firm and the skins cure. Feed with a nitrogen-rich liquid feed in early spring to push leaf growth, since each leaf becomes a wrapper layer on the bulb, but stop feeding nitrogen once the bulbs start to swell.
If your garlic sends up a flower stalk, or scape, on hardneck types, snap it off. This sends the plant's energy back into the bulb, and the scapes themselves are delicious stir-fried.
Problems and pests
The main disease to watch for is rust, which shows as orange spots on the leaves in warm, humid conditions. Good spacing, airflow and crop rotation all help. Avoid overhead watering late in the day. Rot in the bulb usually comes back to poor drainage, so raised beds and free-draining soil are your best defence. See our New Zealand pest and disease guide for organic options.
Harvest and storage
Lift garlic when the lower leaves have yellowed and died back but several green leaves remain up top, usually around late December into January. Each green leaf is a wrapper around the bulb, so harvesting while a few are still green gives you bulbs that store well. Loosen with a fork rather than pulling, to avoid bruising.
Cure the bulbs by hanging or laying them out in a dry, airy, shaded spot for two to three weeks until the skins are papery and the necks dry. Once cured, trim the roots and tops, or plait softneck types, and store in a cool, dry, airy place. Well-cured softneck garlic keeps for many months. Set your best bulbs aside as next year's seed.
Hardneck vs softneck garlic
Most garlic falls into two camps. Softneck types suit the warmer parts of New Zealand, store for a long time and do not send up a flower stalk, so you can plait them. Hardneck and turban types send up an edible scape and tend to do better with a proper cold winter, which makes them a strong choice for the South Island and inland districts. Printanor, the New Zealand standard, is an intermediate type that performs well across most of the country.
Best garlic varieties for New Zealand
Printanor
The standard New Zealand commercial variety and the home-garden benchmark. Reliable nationwide, with good-sized bulbs of around 8 to 12 cloves and dependable keeping. If you only grow one, grow this.
Takahue
A New Zealand heirloom from the Far North with strong, full flavour. Suits warmer areas and rewards growers who like a richer-tasting garlic.
Rakaia
A good keeper with solid bulbs, well suited to cooler South Island conditions. A reliable storing variety for the pantry.
Elephant Garlic
Very large, mild bulbs that are technically a leek relative rather than true garlic. The cloves are big and few, the flavour gentle, and it is fun to grow for its sheer size.
| Variety | Type | Best for | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Printanor | Intermediate | Nationwide, the standard | 8 to 12 cloves, good keeper |
| Takahue | Softneck-leaning | Warmer areas | Strong heirloom flavour |
| Rakaia | Suits cooler areas | South Island | Excellent storing variety |
| Elephant Garlic | Leek relative | Large, mild bulbs | Few big cloves, gentle flavour |
New Zealand season note
The shortest-day-to-longest-day tradition is a great anchor, but the exact window shifts with your region. Warm-north gardeners can start a little earlier, from May to June, while colder southern districts plant around June. The plant needs a cold spell and lengthening days to bulb, so use the timing tool above and the New Zealand planting calendars or the garlic plant page for timing tuned to your district.
Plan your garlic bed in the app
The Planting Season app works out how many cloves your bed needs, reminds you when to plant and harvest, and tracks every bulb you lift. It works offline, with no App Store needed.
Open the free app →Frequently asked questions
When should I plant garlic in New Zealand?
The New Zealand tradition is to plant garlic on the shortest day, around 21 June, and harvest on the longest day, around 21 December. In practice, warm-north gardeners can plant a little earlier, from May to June, while cold-south gardeners aim for around June. The cloves need a cold period and lengthening days to form good bulbs.
Should I use supermarket garlic to plant?
It is far better to use certified New Zealand seed garlic such as Printanor, Takahue or Rakaia. Supermarket bulbs are often imported and may be treated to stop sprouting, and they can carry diseases that build up in your soil. Seed garlic is grown for planting and gives you healthier, more reliable bulbs.
What is the difference between hardneck and softneck garlic?
Softneck garlic suits warmer parts of New Zealand, stores for a long time and does not send up a flower stalk, so you can plait it. Hardneck and turban types send up a scape you can eat, and they do better with a cold winter, which makes them a good choice for the South Island and inland districts. Printanor is an intermediate type that performs across most of the country.
How many cloves do I get from one bulb of garlic?
Most garlic bulbs hold around 8 to 12 cloves, and each clove you plant grows into one new bulb. So one bulb planted out can become 8 to 12 bulbs at harvest. Always plant the largest, healthiest cloves, as bigger cloves tend to grow bigger bulbs.
How far apart do you plant garlic cloves?
Plant cloves about 15 centimetres apart, pointy end up, around 3 to 5 centimetres deep, in rows roughly 25 to 30 centimetres apart. The planting calculator above works out how many cloves and bulbs you need for your bed length at 15 centimetre spacing.
When is garlic ready to harvest?
Lift garlic when the lower leaves have yellowed and died back but several green leaves remain at the top, usually around late December into January. Each green leaf is a wrapper around the bulb, so harvesting while some are still green gives you bulbs that store well. Tradition aims for the longest day.
Why is my garlic bulb small or single?
Small bulbs, or a single round with no cloves, usually mean the garlic did not get enough cold or was planted too late, too crowded, or short of water and feed in spring. Plant on time, use large cloves, keep it weed free and well fed, and water steadily through spring for full-size bulbs.