Tag: garlic

False garlic

On By CarynIn Flora

Here is another early spring bloomer in Texas: Nothoscordum bivalve also known as false garlic or Crow poison. We had so many in the lawn at our last house that I would make wreaths and crowns for my kids. The long thin stems make it easy to braid into garland (albeit tiny tiny garland!)

I was excited to see it bloom in our new neck of the woods. It has definitely been a sure sign of spring for me for many years.

I stumbled upon a good article about the toxicity and history of this plant too. Apparently some chicken farmers would spread a paste of this flower in the heads of their chickens so if a crow ate the chicken, the crow would die.

I think I will just cover my runs, thank you very much.

Winter garlic

On By CarynIn Garden
Winter garlic

I have winter garlic sprouting up! It is very exciting to see the shoots of green coming up from where I planted them. They won’t be ready to harvest until late spring or early summer, when the green wilts and turns yellow, but so encouraging.

Garlic is also good for chickens’ immune systems, so being able to grow my own garlic is great! (I do love Lisa’s posts at Fresh Eggs Daily!)

Apparently nothing eats garlic leaves either, so I planted them outside the chicken runs. Once the coop is done, we will set up three runs, with the middle section as my garden. My plants will be protected from rabbits and deer, and have natural bug exterminators roaming the perimeter! (Chickens love bugs, but also garden plants, so they will only be let into the garden when harvest is over.)

Here’s to signs of Spring! Prost!