Get the best flavor and longest storage life from your homegrown garlic with proper harvesting, curing and storage. Then fill that space with a quick-maturing vegetable for a tasty fall harvest.

Harvest garlic when approximately one third, but less than half of the leaves turn brown. Start by digging one plant to check the garlic for maturity. Cloves should be plump and fill the skin. 

Immature garlic does not store well, while over-mature bulbs are more subject to disease. Don’t discard but rather use immature garlic as soon as possible. 

Cure the garlic you plan to store for three to four weeks in a warm, well-ventilated location. Once dried, remove soil, long roots and only the damaged outermost layer of papery skin with a brush of your gloved hand. Cut off the tops being careful not to damage the papery covering that protects the cloves. 

Store the garlic in a cool location with good air circulation and out of direct sunlight to prevent resprouting. Properly harvested and cured garlic will last for up to eight months.

Garlic can also be frozen. Place the whole bulb, individual cloves, or peeled, chopped cloves in a single layer in a plastic freezer bag. Use frozen garlic to flavor your favorite recipes within three to four months for the best flavor.

Once harvested, prepare the area for another planting. Spread a layer of compost over the area or incorporate an inch of compost into the top six inches of soil and fertilize if needed.

Calculate the number of frost-free days remaining in your growing season. Simply count the number of days from planting to the date of the average first fall frost in your area. Select and plant vegetable seeds and transplants that will be ready to harvest before the first killing frost in fall. Check the back of the seed packet or plant tag for the number of days from planting to harvest. If there is enough time for the summer planting to grow and produce before the first killing frost, they can be added to the garden. Or extend the season with cold frames and floating row covers to protect plantings as needed from killing frost.

Depending on the variety, cucumbers and bush beans are ready to harvest in as few as 60 days. Enjoy great flavor from summer plantings of broccoli and cabbage transplants harvested during the cooler months of fall. Sow seeds of radishes, beets, carrots and other quick-maturing vegetables for a fall harvest.

Once your seeds and transplants are in the ground, be sure to water properly. Keep the seedbed and roots of transplants moist for the first few weeks. Gradually reduce watering frequency as seedlings sprout and grow and transplants become established. Help keep the soil cool by mulching plantings with shredded leaves, evergreen needles or other organic mulch. 

Enjoy the rewards of all your planning, planting and care with bountiful harvests now through the end of the season.

Melinda Myers is the author of numerous books, including Small Space Gardening. Myers web site is www.MelindaMyers.com.