| Contact: Gayle Volk, + 1 970 495-3205
2.27.09 FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
RESEARCH
OFFERS GUIDELINES FOR FARMERS, VARIETY FOR CONSUMERS
FORT COLLINS, CO—Consumer
interest in new and diverse types of garlic is on the
rise. Fueled by factors including the growth of the
“local foods” movement, interest in world
cuisines, and widespread reports touting its numerous
health benefits, demand for high-quality, locally grown
garlic is increasing throughout the U.S.
While most grocery stores in carry the familiar white,
“softneck” garlic (which is most often imported),
varieties of “hardneck” garlic in colorful
hues of purple, magenta, pink, and white are becoming
more available at local vegetable stands and through
direct-marketing programs. The results of a recent study
of 10 garlic cultivars can help farmers identify niche
regional markets and offer new, in-demand garlic varieties
to consumers.
Hundreds of garlic (Allium sativum L.) cultivars are
available from seed companies, retailers, and germplasm
collections. Increasingly, growers purchase bulbs from
nonlocal sources and are often disappointed by unpredictable
yields. Garlic bulbs resulting from seed stock purchased
in other regions may not display the characteristics—such
as bulb size, shape, and color—featured in the
catalogs.
Gayle M. Volk of the National Center for Genetic Resources
Preservation, U.S. Department of Agriculture’s
Agricultural Research Service in Fort Collins, and David
Stern of the Garlic Seed Foundation authored a study
designed to determine which garlic traits are stable
and which traits vary depending on where the garlic
is grown. According to the study published in a recent
issue of HortScience and funded primarily by the Northeast
Sustainable Agricultural Research and Education program,
prior research has shown that traits such as clove number,
clove skin coloration, and topset number are representative
of cultivar type across growth locations, whereas “phenotypic”
traits such as bulb wrapper color, bulb size, and bulb
elemental composition are specific to sites.
Ten diverse garlic cultivars (‘Ajo Rojo’,
‘Chesnok’, ‘German White’, ‘Inchelium’,
‘Purple Glazer’, ‘Red Janice’,
‘Sakura’, ‘Siberian’, ‘Silverwhite’,
and ‘Spanish Roja’) were grown at 12 locations
in the United States and Canada for the study. One cultivar
representing each of the 10 garlic types was selected
to best capture the genetic diversity available within
Allium sativum.
In 2005, garlic bulbs obtained from producers in Washington
were distributed to 10 garlic growers who practiced
sustainable production methods with minimal or no chemical
inputs. Small-scale garlic farmers were provided with
planting stocks from the same original sources and were
asked to grow them on their farms for two consecutive
years using their best practices.
At each location, 16 cloves per cultivar were planted
in each of three replicate plots. Bulbs were harvested
when the lower one-third to one-half of the leaves on
the plants had dried. Six to eight bulbs of each cultivar
grown in each plot were sent to Fort Collins for data
collection and analysis. In Fall 2006, bulbs produced
at each farm were replanted and grown for a second season
at the same farm (except for a change in the Colorado
farm and the addition of a farm in Ontario, Canada).
Quality of planting stock, bulb characteristics, bulb
wrapper color, bulb yield, clove characteristics and
bulb elemental composition were analyzed. Growers also
provided feedback for the study using digital documentation,
surveys, planting notes, and harvest notes.
Among the significant findings: bulb wrapper color
and bulb size were determined to be “highly dependent”
on location and cultivar. “It was not surprising
to find that bulb size and circumference were highly
site-dependent and correlated. Bulb wrapper color is
also highly site-specific, supporting evidence reported
by marketers that bulb color is more determined by growth
environment than cultivar types”, Volk stated.
The research offers promise for savvy consumers interested
in more locally grown, fresh garlic varieties. “As
consumers start to recognize and request garlic types
by name, information about which traits define specific
cultivars and which traits are highly variable will
be valuable for successful marketing of new garlic cultivars”,
explained Volk.
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View
the complete study and abstract (pdf file).
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