Cornell Vegetable Program Enrollment

Program Areas

  • Food Safety
  • Variety Evaluation
  • Market Development
  • Pest Management
  • Cultural Practices

Enrollment Benefits

  • Telephone / Email Consultations
  • VegEdge Newsletter
  • Direct Mailings
  • Educational Meetings & Conferences
  • In-Field Educational Opportunities
  • On-Farm Research Trials

CVP Enrollment Form (PDF; 121KB)

Enrollee Login

Password:

Log In To Access:

  • Issues of VegEdge Newsletters
  • Helpful Diagnostic Tool:
      What's wrong with my crop?

Not an Enrollee? Enroll Now!

Online Enrollment Form

Harvest Considerations for Garlic

Crystal Stewart-Courtens, Extension Vegetable Specialist
Eastern New York Commercial Horticulture

August 7, 2012

Harvest Considerations for Garlic
Normally we think of garlic harvest time being somewhere around mid to late July, but very little about this year is normal! Garlic is maturing considerably ahead of schedule, with some growers on light soil or plastic already beginning to pull some varieties now. In some cases the plants are not dying back on schedule with the bulb, so don't just use that as an indicator. If you have had any foliar disease or thrips feeding, the foliage may be ahead of the bulbs. If your garlic has been kept very healthy and well watered the leaves may actually be behind. I have been pulling a fair amount of garlic in the last few days which only has a couple of leaves dead but which will probably be ready to harvest very early next week.

If leaves aren't the best indicator of maturity, how else can you tell? The best indicator is how the cloves are filling the wrapper leaves. Take a couple of average looking plants from each variety, and cut them in half perpendicular to the stem so that you are cutting through all of the cloves. Each clove should be tight in its wrapper leaves. If there is any give when you squeeze the bulb, or the wrapper leaves seem a little loose around the cloves the garlic will continue to expand for a little while longer (figure 1). A few of the outer wrapper leaves will probably be breaking down. That is normal.

You can also look at the shape of each clove. Cloves start out being more or less round, and expand to more of a wedge shape (figure 1). As garlic reaches full maturity, the cloves will pull very slightly away from the scape on hardneck varieties.

If you let the garlic stay in the ground too long, too many wrapper leaves will decay and the cloves will continue to expand until the garlic actually splits open. At this point the garlic becomes virtually unmarketable. Make sure that you check your garlic every few days, especially as we move into another warm stretch of weather.

As you are harvesting, keep in mind that you want to reduce the amount of water that you bring into your drying area and you want to avoid scalding your garlic during harvest. If you can harvest early in the morning (before 11 or so, depending on how hot the day is) on a dry day, then clean in the shade during the afternoon, you should have the best results possible. Allowing garlic to sit out in the field exposed to the sun can result in sun scalding, which will cause affected cloves to break down. If you have to harvest in wet weather try to remove as much mud as possible and to get any foliage you leave on the plant as dry as possible before moving it into the curing area. The higher the relative humidity is in your curing area, the slower the garlic will dry down. The slower the garlic dries, the more potential there is for disease. Dry garlic means lower relative humidity right from the start!

more crops
Asparagus

Asparagus

Beets

Beets

Broccoli

Broccoli

Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Sprouts

Cabbage

Cabbage

Carrots

Carrots

Cauliflower

Cauliflower

Cucumbers

Cucumbers

Dry Beans

Dry Beans

Eggplant

Eggplant

Ethnic Vegetables

Ethnic Vegetables

Garlic

Garlic

Horseradish

Horseradish

Kohlrabi

Kohlrabi

Leeks

Leeks

Lettuce / Leafy Greens

Lettuce / Leafy Greens

Melons

Melons

Onions

Onions

Parsnips

Parsnips

Peas

Peas

Peppers

Peppers

Potatoes

Potatoes

Pumpkins / Gourds

Pumpkins / Gourds

Radishes

Radishes

Rhubarb

Rhubarb

Rutabaga

Rutabaga

Snap Beans

Snap Beans

Squash - Summer

Squash - Summer

Squash- Winter

Squash- Winter

Sweet Corn

Sweet Corn

Sweet Potatoes

Sweet Potatoes

Tomatoes

Tomatoes

Turnips

Turnips

more crops

Upcoming Events

Urban and Small-Scale Growers Meeting

April 5, 2024 : Urban and Small-Scale Growers Meeting
Buffalo, NY

This event is an opportunity for small-scale growers, urban growers, community garden leaders and ag service providers to build community, engage in production-focused workshops, and share resources. Topics include building soil productivity, insect and disease management, growing vegetables, berries, and tree fruits, and more.

REGISTRATION IS CLOSED! We met the space limitation for this event.

View Urban and Small-Scale Growers Meeting Details

2024 DEC Special Permit Handler Training -- Wayne County

April 9, 2024
Newark, NY

Special Permits (SP) will relieve the certified pesticide applicator from "on-site within voice contact" supervision of non-certified pesticide applicators when they are handling federally-restricted-use pesticides for which they hold a Special Permit. The 8 specific labels covered: Endigo ZCX, Warrior II with Zeon Technology, Agri-Mek SC, Beseige, Leverage 360, Danitol 2.4EC, Mustang Maxx, and Lannate LV. 

View 2024 DEC Special Permit Handler Training -- Wayne County Details

2024 DEC Special Permit Handler Training -- Orleans County

April 10, 2024
Albion, NY

Special Permits (SP) will relieve the certified pesticide applicator from "on-site within voice contact" supervision of non-certified pesticide applicators when they are handling federally-restricted-use pesticides for which they hold a Special Permit. The 8 specific labels covered: Endigo ZCX, Warrior II with Zeon Technology, Agri-Mek SC, Beseige, Leverage 360, Danitol 2.4EC, Mustang Maxx, and Lannate LV. 

View 2024 DEC Special Permit Handler Training -- Orleans County Details

Announcements

JOB POSTING: Onion Crop Scout

Be a Vital Part of New York Onion Production!

We are looking for someone who appreciates agriculture to scout commercial onion fields in Oswego Co. and/or Wayne Co. for 13 weeks during the summer, maximum 19 hours/week, who would return to the seasonal position annually.

As an Onion Crop Scout for the Cornell Vegetable Program (CVP), you will independently scout 11 commercial onion fields collecting data on insect pests, diseases, weeds and crop stage/quality. Scouting data will be summarized into a preliminary report which is finalized by Cornell's Onion Specialist. Growers use the scouting reports to inform their spray decisions, which enables an integrated approach to pest management. Your hard work will ensure grower engagement, implementation of research-based recommendations, and early detection of emerging issues. It is the "beating heart" of CVP's onion program.

Pay: $18.50/hr. No benefits. Personal mileage will be reimbursed at the federal rate.

Key Qualifications & Skills:
  • High School diploma and 6 months experience in an agriculture setting, or the equivalent combination of education and experience.
  • Must be able to meet the travel requirements of the position and have reliable transportation as well as have and maintain a valid and unrestricted New York State driver's license.
  • Visual concentration and attention to detail are required to detect pests and pest damage.
  • Able to work independently in collecting and summarizing data.
  • Must be able to work outdoors in all types of weather.
  • Proven experience in communicating effectively, both written and oral.
  • Preferred: Experience working with plants, plant disease and other pest identification.
Training will include being accompanied by a veteran onion scout for the first season with the intention of scouting independently in the second year, and ideally for several more years after.

Flexible on start and end dates, day(s) of week you work, and whether Oswego or Wayne or both counties are scouted. Our priority is finding someone who will return to the position annually.

Read details about the Onion Crop Scout position.

To apply (resume and cover letter): http://tiny.cc/Onion_Scout_WDR_00043345

Management Practices for High Organic Matter Soils

We are exploring management practices for vegetable farmers with high organic matter soils. These soils are usually found in urban growing areas as urban farmers typically grow in imported soil mixtures that have been constructed over time and in high tunnels where leaching events are limited. In both cases, we see that soil pH and calcium levels can increase due to alkaline irrigation water and with grower inputs such as high levels of compost and/or fertilizer. We commonly see limited plant nutrient uptake due to high soil pH. We have produced four "Management Practices for Urban Soil Health" case studies sharing project updates in our urban cover crop, pH adjustment, and bulk density adjustment work. In each case study, we are looking at the effect of the management practice on soil and crop health. 

Management Practices for Urban Soil Health: Cover Cropping
Management Practices for Urban Soil Health: pH Adjustment
Management Practices for Urban Soil Health: pH Adjustment in NYC
Management Practices for Urban Soil Health: Correcting Nutrient Test Results for Soils with High Organic Matter

2023 Year in Review and 2024 Preview

As the Cornell Vegetable Program reflects on 2023, we want to thank you for your partnership and continued support of our team and the work we do to address issues impacting the commercial vegetable industry in the western and central portion of NYS. Our 2023 Year in Review and 2024 Preview report highlights of some of the many research and outreach programs led by our team members over the last year plus a look ahead to some of our plans for 2024.
  • Use of Ground Barriers as a New Strategy for Swede Midge in Brassicas for Small Organic and Urban Farms
  • Cornell Vegetable Program Responds to Late Blight in 2023
  • Working Groups Help to Improve the Western NY Food System
  • Field Trials Completed to Test Lasers as a Bird Deterrent in Sweet Corn
  • Increased Monitoring of Western Bean Cutworm in Dry Beans
  • Sweet Potato Varieties Suitable for Western NY Production?


NEWSLETTER  |   CURRENT PROJECTS  |   IMPACT IN NY  |   SPONSORSHIP  |   RESOURCES  |   SITE MAP