Garlic

Garlic (Allium sativum - Latin) is a species in the onion family. Close relatives of garlic include the leek and shallot. Garlic grows well in well drained, loamy, well composted soil enriched with natural nitrogen. The optimum soil pH for garlic is between 6 and 7. Liming is recommended if the pH is less than 5.8.Garlic does not like to stay wet so I plant mine in wide, raised beds. Another enemy of garlic is weeds. Rogue weeds will rob garlic of the nitrogen that is needed to give garlic a good size for harvest. I mulch my plants in early spring with straw, not hay, to retard weeds and to keep the soil moist at the surface.

Garlic and onions are such an old cultivated crop that it is difficult with any certainty to trace the country of its origin. De Candolle, in his treatise on the Origin of Cultivated Plants, considered that it was apparently indigenous to the southwest of Siberia, whence it spread to southern Europe, where it has become naturalized, and is said to be found wild in Sicily. It is widely cultivated in the Latin countries bordering on the Mediterranean. Dumas has described the air of Provence as being 'particularly perfumed by the refined essence of this mystically attractive bulb.'

Garlic cloves are arranged in a head, called the "bulb," averaging about 2 inches in height and diameter. Both the cloves and the entire bulb are encased in paper-like sheathes that can be white, off-white or pinkish. Although garlic cloves have a firm texture, they can be easily cut or crushed. The taste of garlic is like no other-it hits the palate with a hot pungency that is shadowed by a very subtle background sweetness.

Garlic and Onions Protective against Many Cancers
Making garlic and onions a staple in your healthy way of eating may greatly lower your risk of several common cancers, suggests a large data set of case-control studies from Southern European populations (Galeone C, Pelucchi C et al, American Journal of Clinical Nutrition).

Study participants consuming the most garlic had a 39% reduced risk for cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx, 57% reduced risk for esophageal cancer, 26% reduced risk for colorectal cancer, 44% reduced risk for laryngeal cancer, 10% reduced risk for breast cancer, 22% reduced risk for ovarian cancer, 19% reduced risk for prostate cancer, and 31% reduced risk for renal cell cancer, compared to those eating the least garlic.

Similarly, those eating the most onions showed an 84% reduced risk for cancer of the oral cavity and pharynx, 88% reduced risk for esophageal cancer, 56% reduced risk for colorectal cancer, 83% reduced risk for laryngeal cancer, 25% reduced risk for breast cancer, 73% reduced risk for ovarian cancer, 71% reduced risk for prostate cancer, and 38% reduced risk for renal cell cancer, compared to those eating the least onions.

I found the above article on the Internet. The medical claims of health benefits of garlic are widely debated. Some people swear by the preventative measures and the health benefits from garlic. Others say it's just an old wives tale. Personally, I don't spend much time worrying about it. I love the taste of garlic and I am in the camp that believes that garlic improves blood flow and lowers cholesterol. Even if it doesn't, it certainly doesn't hurt!

Eat, drink, and be merry. Enjoy good foods with good garlic! Enjoy life.