Gourmet Garlic: Purple Stripes

Reader Contribution by Andrea Cross
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If you have ever wondered what prehistoric forms of garlic looked and tasted like, then try a Purple Stripe cultivar! These garlics are the closest to the original ancestor of all subsequent garlic types. A rich, robust hardneck variety that contains numerous and often diverse cultivars, common examples of Purple Stripes include ‘Shvelisi,’ ‘Persian Star,’ and ‘Belarus.’

Cultivating Purple Stripe Garlic

Like other hardnecks, Purple Stripe garlic requires a significant cold period in order for the bulbs to reach their full potential. They do benefit from a rich soil environment, however, they are also extremely hardy, making them a good choice for growers whose soil matrix may be somewhat poor, or for growers in warmer climates who are looking to have better success with hardneck garlics.

The plants themselves appear smaller than other garlic types due to thinner, more flexible leaves that begin branching out from the stalk closer to the ground than in other varieties. Purple Stripe garlic usually has paler medium green leaves, which are especially noticeable when grown alongside the lusher foliage of Porcelains and Rocamboles. As with other hardnecks, the scapes will curl – the number of loops determined by the particular cultivar – and then straighten. The umbels produce numerous small to medium-sized bulbils, which of course can be used to improve planting stock.

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