I'm holding a graded bunch of fresh garlic here to be bundled for drying. After you remove the garlic bulbs from your garden you should gently brush what dirt that clings to the bulb as best you can. After the garlic has dried you can use a brush to remove the rest before you take it into your kitchen. Avoid any undue exposure to the sun after you take the garlic from the soil.
Second I would suggest grading and sorting your garlic bulbs by size. You won't want to plant your smaller bulbs but they are still great to eat. Hopefully you already have an area set aside that you can control the air flow and humidity. You'll want an area with moving air and low humidity nothing above 70% relative humidity. Hang your bunches of garlic using wire or rope, if short on room or long on garlic, you can also create screen shelving for this purpose.
Below I've posted my 100 or so garlic bulbs graded and bundled to be hung for drying.
Beautiful! Garlic is a staple in our garden and cooking as well. Thanks for putting this information out there--we're grateful to see gardeners inspiring others to DIY. It really is easy!
Are these grown in raised beds, or just in the ground?
Yes these were grown in a 4' X 12' raised bed.
Thanks for sharing!