Rocambole Garlic: description, cultivation, planting and care with photo

Rocambole garlic is popular in Europe. It is grown in Siberia and the Crimea. In the Middle lane, the plant is rarely found in gardens. And in vain! One head can really feed a family of 4.

Some gardeners call a representative of the lilac onion family Rocambole. In appearance, the upper part resembles a leek: flat, leathery leaves extend from a thick "leg".

The heads are impressive in size. It tastes like an onion, similar to garlic. The characteristic sharpness and bitterness are softened. Added spice.

The plant is decorative: during flowering it decorates the garden with lilac heads. Vegetable beds turn into flower beds.

Giant Garlic

Because of the large heads, the plant is called elephant garlic. He came to Russia in the 19th century. But it did not receive distribution. In those days, spicy onions were popular.

The plant comes from Asia. Rocambole is sometimes mistakenly referred to as Egyptian garlic. It is actively grown in the southern regions. The plant is unpretentious: gives a decent harvest at moderately warm summer temperatures.

Representative of lilies is quite easy to grow from seeds or cloves. Subject to the rules of agricultural technology, it is realistic to provide a family with vegetable products for a year.

Onion-garlic Rocambole pleases gardeners with non-standard taste. Bitterness is insignificant, sharpness is added. In the Mediterranean, heads are baked and served as a hot appetizer.

Description

A large vegetable combines the features of two representatives of the lily family. The upper part has a rigid "leg". A rosette with leathery leaves 1-2 cm wide departs from it. The color of the ground part is bright green with a matte emerald coating.

Rocambole garlic bulb has a diameter of 6-10 cm. It is covered with hard scales. The number of teeth is from 2 to 6 pieces. The mass of the head with a minimum care of 100 g. Under favorable climatic conditions, it is realistic to get a bulb of 450 g.

Air babies mature underground (like some varieties of gladiolus). They are used for landing. Arrows crown purple flowers. The flowering plant is very decorative. Seeds do not ripen.

According to the description, the taste of Rocambole garlic resembles both plants at the same time. Bitterness and characteristic smell are absent. Spicy spice added.

Vegetable does not store well. Delicious marinated or s alted. Gardeners came up with the idea of using it as a dry seasoning for soups and second courses.

Summer residents talk about the benefits and dangers of onion-garlic Rocambole:

plant contains micro and macro elements (heals the body);
phytoncides fight bacteria and viruses;
ascorbic acid fights colds;
carotene strengthens muscles (combined with fat);
B vitamins strengthen the nervous system;
bitters stimulate appetite;
Immune system is strengthened with PP vitamins.

People with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, with increased acidity of gastric juice, chronic diseases of the liver and gallbladder, should eat onions with caution: give preference to baked foods. Pregnant women and young children are not recommended to eat it.

Gardens grow large Rocambole garlic as a useful plant. It is productive, tasty, decorates the beds.

Types of garlic Rocambole

Biologists say the plant is a variety, not a hybrid. There are several types of very large Rocambole garlic:

Janissaries. Newly bred giant garlic Rocambole. It has a balanced spicy taste. Heads 6-7 cm.
White Elephant. Of the cultivated, the largest garlic is Rocambole. Value: resistance of the bottom to decay, winter hardiness. A characteristic feature: the absence of flower arrows. Teeth are beige (there are 7 pieces in the bulb). Medium spicy.
Pearls. The most fruitful and sharp. With competent agricultural technology, they get 4 kg / m². Drawback: active shooting.

In culture, they are unpretentious. They differ in the color of the covering scales, ripening period, taste. Among other varieties of onions, Rocambole garlic species are not well known. The most popular Janissaries. Gardeners prefer the common name: elephant garlic.

Reproduction of garlic Rocambole

Cultivation of the plant is determined by the two-year development cycle of Rocambole, care and cultivation. Air bulbs (babies) ripen underground, around the bottom. Usually there are 15-20 of them. Bulbs are harvested from biennial plants.

The advantage of propagating garlic Rocambole: in the first year, an onion grows from children, commensurate with a chicken egg. Gardeners use it as food: the taste does not differ from the taste of the mother plant.

To obtain seed material, it is recommended to plant a single tooth again. A full-fledged bulb will grow out of it. Large and he althy ones are selected for breeding. They are dried in a shaded place for 3-5 days. Then the roots and tops are cut off, wrapped in paper and stored until planting in the fruit bin of the refrigerator.

The head is divided into teeth, the upper covering scales are carefully removed. Affected parts are discarded, he althy ones are planted in a prepared ridge.

Tillage and preparation for planting

Rocambole - a giant garlic, requires a prepared ridge for growth and development. The landing site is open and well-lit. The soil should be cultivated in advance:

Check acidity. With increased - you should add dolomite flour, slaked lime, oven ash (1 l per 1 m²).
Add organic matter (mature compost, rotted manure) 1 bucket per 2 m². Dig a shovel onto a bayonet.
Rocambole onion planted on a garlic bed loves loose, breathable soil. On heavy (clay, loam) sanding is required (a bucket of 3-4 m²), on light ones (sand, peat) - claying.
After a week, add a mineral complex for bulb crops (according to the manufacturer's instructions).
Select planting material. Discard damaged or diseased prongs.
Remove the top layer of the husk from the children (it prevents germination).
To prevent bolting, the material is heated in water at 40-45 ⁰С for 2 hours (only during spring sowing).
Garlic is planted 5-7 days after soil preparation.
Mark rows. Distance: 15-20 cm. Keep 20 cm between holes. When sowing by children, the pattern changes: 5 x 10 cm.

General rule: planting material is recommended to be embedded in the soil to a depth of 2-3 prong heights.

Planting Rocambole in spring

Growing elephant garlic from seed in the spring produces a crop that stores better. It is recommended to warm the cloves before planting in a pale pink solution of potassium permanganate. This will disinfect the planting material and speed up germination.

When to plant Rocambole?

This is a cold hardy crop. Landing should be carried out when the soil warms up to 5-6 degrees Celsius. The plant is not afraid of returning cold weather - a mixture of onions and garlic.

According to the ripening time, marketable bulbs will hit the table in August-September. Elephant garlic seeds are selected from them. They can be planted before winter.

Planting Rocambole in autumn

Planting material is children grown in summer or teeth. They are selected and reviewed. Sick or gnawed by mice or insects are discarded. Dry. Elephant garlic Rocambole quickly dries out and shrivels. It should be aired in the shade.

Onion garlic should be planted 2-3 weeks before stable sub-zero temperatures: the cloves should take root. This will help them survive the winter.

Before the onset of cold weather, the garden bed remains uncovered. Then it is required to mulch the plantings with a layer of 5-10 cm. Rotten sawdust, neutral peat will do. In the spring, after the snow melts, the mulch is carefully raked to the side.

The garden serves as a nursery for Rocambole: seeds ripen in summer and planted in autumn. Benefits of winter sowing: saving time in the spring, getting early production. Disadvantage: the harvested vegetable does not store well.

Precursors

Rocambole grows like garlic. This plant is demanding on soil fertility. It actively takes nutrients from it.

Cultivated garlic feels good after cabbage, beans, turnips, radishes. The gardener runs the risk of being left without a crop when planting Rocambole after potatoes, onions and any lilies.

After vegetables and any herbs, before planting large Rocambole garlic, mineral and organic fertilizers should be applied to the soil.

The onion-garlic plant gives large heads when planted before winter after salads, arugula.

Care

To get the huge fruits of garlic Rocambole you have to try:

need to carefully weed the ridges;
soil must be kept moist;
during prolonged rains, it is recommended to arrange water drainage;
the soil should be loosened (especially after rains);
planting onion-garlic Rocambole tolerate heat well;
flower stalks should be broken off in arrow varieties;
Growing Japanese garlic is impossible on poor soil: top dressing is needed (one organic is done after germination, the second mineral - after 10 days, the third mineral during flowering).

Feeding is done if the ridges were not refueled during planting.

Collection

Dig up Rocambole garlic when the lower leaves turn yellow and begin to dry out. Bulbs are taken out of the ground carefully, using a pitchfork. Cleaning is done in dry sunny weather. The dug out vegetable is kept for 2 hours in the sun. Ultraviolet disinfects heads.

Then lay out the crop to dry for a week under a canopy in the shade. At the finished Rocambole, the roots are cut off without damaging the bottom, and the tops, leaving 15 cm.

Garlic planted in spring is suitable for winter storage. After harvesting, the heads are put into plastic boxes. Keep in a cool dry place.