Growing Success One Clove At A Time

Growing Success One Clove At A Time Rebekah Sandford’s love of gardening blossomed into a thriving garlic business in Pansy, Manitoba, about nine years ago. Her venture, Prairie Winds Garlic Farm, began small, with Sandford planting a single 1-lb. bag of garlic, unsure of what to expect. “I didn’t have a farm background, so I had a lot of learning to do,” Sandford says. “I didn’t realize you could grow garlic in the fall that would survive the winter, but I tried it and was amazed it lived through our cold weather. Best of all, it was delicious garlic.” After a few years of sharing her small crop with friends and neighbors, her garlic became a local favorite. Inspired, her husband, Ben, researched the market as a potential side hustle. With 40 acres of bushland available, the couple cleared some land. “We thought we could use the bushland to pay off some bills. My husband threw out a ‘Go big or go home’ number of 25,000 cloves to start with. I remember thinking, ‘That’s a crazy lot of garlic,’ but we went for it. I’d have to say, don’t ever do that, as it was too big of a learning curve,” Sandford laughs. Currently, Prairie Winds Garlic Farm plants about 3/4 of an acre, with a total of 32,000 to 40,000 garlic plants. “Any bigger, and we’d have to invest in equipment as it’s very labor-intensive,” she explains. “It’s all done by hand using a dibbler to poke holes in the ground where each seed is placed. Neighbor kids, friends and relatives come out and help us during the full day. Afterward, we do a big barbecue to thank everyone.” The Sandfords plant in the fall and harvest around the end of July, cultivating up to 12 garlic varieties with unique flavors, spice and sweetness. They maintain their own seedstock but introduce new varieties every seven years to minimize disease and improve yields. They follow a four-year land rotation to prevent disease and bug infestations. Garlic grows well in their sandy soil, and they fertilize with sheep manure and fish emulsion because many customers prefer natural and organic growing methods. Sandford avoids herbicides and pesticides, and all weeding is done by hand. The crop can withstand a fall frost, at least to a point, in Manitoba’s cold climate. It greens up in the spring and is cured for three to four weeks after harvest to harden its skin and preserve the plants. Sandford found the biggest challenge to be unpredictable weather. “Garlic prefers dry weather but likes about 1 in. of rain a week. In our first year, we had 9 in. of rain in 6 days, which flooded out half our crop. We didn’t realize the area had such poor drainage. It was discouraging, but like my father always said, ‘Try, try, again.’ I really recommend making sure you’re ready for the rain and have reasonable drainage.” Prairie Wind Garlic Farm packages and sells its garlic for about $18 to $20 per lb. at stores, farmers markets, and through social media and online sales. Shipments also go to small grocery stores. The farm consistently sells out of its garlic harvest by the end of October. Contact: FARM SHOW Followup, Prairie Winds Garlic Farm, Pansy, Manitoba, Canada R0A 1X0 (ph 204-392-0735; pwgarlic@gmail.com).

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