Plait your garlic after harvesting and hang in the kitchen to dry for a practical and good-looking way of storing the bulbs through winter. Once dry, garlic bulbs keep for months and will see you well into next spring.
There are two types of garlic, so make sure you've got the right one. Softneck garlics such as 'Solent Wight' store well and are best for plaiting. Hardneck varieties (such as 'Chesnok Wight' or 'Red Sicilian') are highly valued for their fantastic flavour, but have stiff central stems which don't plait well, so store these in a net bag and eat first as they don't keep as long.
To start plaiting, take three bulbs and place in a row. Then start weaving the leaves together, pulling the bulbs in tightly as you go. On about the second pass, introduce the next bulb of garlic, and then start adding a bulb to each strand of the plait in turn, spacing them evenly. Pull each bulb firmly against the plait as you introduce it to keep it all closely packed together. When your plait is about 1m long, knot the leaves together at the top and hang on a hook till you need it.
