Garlic
Allium sativum
Also called Hardneck garlic and Softneck garlic
Garden plant · Herbs, veg & fruitPlant in autumn — it needs a cold spell to split into cloves at all. Supermarket bulbs rarely work.
Care at a glance
- Ease
- Medium
- Water
- Once a weekWater the ground — water at the base, in the morning, not over the leaves.
- Light
- Full sun
- Feed
- Every 30 days
- Humidity
- Low
- Hardiness
- Hardy — an average winter RHS H4, to -10°C
- Size
- 0.3 m tall · 0.3 m across
- Lifecycle
- Bulb
- Origin
- Central Asia
Is it safe for pets and people?
PetsToxic to pets
Affects dogs, cats, horses. Signs: vomiting, damage to the red blood cells (anaemia), blood in the urine, weakness, a racing heart and panting.
PeopleIrritates skin
Safe to eat: the cloves.
HandlingTake care handling it
RHS lists it as a skin irritant/allergen.
Checked against ASPCA and RHS on 2026-07-31.
A guide, not veterinary or medical advice. If a pet or a person has eaten a plant and you are worried, call your vet or doctor now — don’t wait for signs to appear. Spotted a mistake? Tell us.
First signs of trouble
- Bright orange powdery streaks along the leaves from early summer that rub off onto a finger, on the oldest leaves first.Leek rust · disease
- One plant yellows from the tips and lifts with no root plate; the base is furred with white mould speckled with black poppy-seed dots.Onion white rot · disease
- A neat line of small white dots punched down a leaf where the adult fly has fed, showing in spring long before the bulb is spoilt.Allium leaf miner · pest