Garlic Varieties for Portland Gardens
Updated: Aug 30
Garlic is one of the most rewarding edibles you can grow in Portland. It thrives in our climate, requires minimal (though dedicated) space and tending. Preserving it doesn’t require canning or freezing. Best of all, growing your own lets you choose which varieties to grow.
Garlic varieties differ in flavor, heat, clove size, number of cloves, storage life, harvest time, and whether they produce edible scapes. Some make four enormous cloves per bulb; others make twenty. Some are excellent keepers, while others don't keep for long, but are worth growing because their flavor is extraordinary.
Portland's relatively mild winters and long, cool spring let us grow both softneck and hardneck garlic successfully. That means the question isn't simply Can I grow garlic? It's which garlic do I want to grow?
For planting instructions, soil preparation, fertilizing, scape removal, harvesting and curing, see the Portland Garlic Grow Guide. This guide is about choosing varieties.
First, a Bit o' Garlic History
All cultivated garlic (Allium sativum) originated in Central Asia around modern-day Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, and northwestern China. From there, humans spread it into the Middle East, Europe, and eventually the Americas.
Hardneck garlics (like Rocamboles, Porcelains, and Purple Stripes) tend to be closer to the wild ancestors. They developed in colder climates, particularly Eastern Europe and Russia, where flowering scapes and fewer, larger cloves helped them overwinter.
Softneck garlics (like Artichokes and Silverskins) were likely selected later in the Mediterranean and Western Europe. They thrive in milder climates, don’t usually produce scapes, and store longer.
Porcelain
Hardneck | Very large cloves | Scapes | Good storage
Porcelains are the garlic for people who regard peeling tiny garlic cloves as an insult to their limited time on Earth. A typical bulb has only about 4–6 enormous cloves, arranged around a sturdy central stalk. The bulbs usually have thick, smooth, pale wrappers—hence "Porcelain"—although purple coloration can occur. They're vigorous, cold hardy, generally strong-flavored and store unusually well for hardneck garlic. This year's varieties: German Porcelain and Musik
Artichoke
Softneck | Many cloves | Braidable | Productive | Long storage
Cut open an Artichoke garlic, and you'll understand the name. Instead of one neat circle of cloves, there are successive overlapping layers, rather like the scales of an artichoke.
These are softnecks, generally producing roughly 8–20 cloves per bulb. They're reliable, productive and good keepers, and their flexible stems can be braided. Artichokes are among the most widely grown garlics in the world and include much of the garlic traditionally grown commercially. For Portland gardeners who want plenty of everyday cooking garlic without giving up homegrown flavor, this group is particularly useful. This year's varieties: Early Italian Purple and Inchelium Red
Silverskin
Softneck | Lots of cloves | Braidable | Late harvest | Exceptional storage
If your priority is having your own garlic still hanging in the kitchen next spring, look at Silverskins. These are late-maturing softnecks with tight, papery wrappers and numerous cloves—often 12–24 per bulb. They're excellent for braiding and are generally the longest-storing garlic group. Flavor can also be surprisingly assertive; "softneck" does not necessarily mean mild. This year's variety: Nootka Rose
Purple Stripe
Hardneck | Scapes | Beautiful bulbs | Excellent cooking garlic
Purple Stripes produce some of the prettiest garlic you'll grow: pale bulb wrappers streaked or splashed with purple and similarly colorful clove skins. Classic Purple Stripes tend to have roughly 8–12 cloves and are particularly prized as culinary garlics. Chesnok Red, for example, is famous for retaining its flavor and developing a smooth texture when roasted. This year's variety: Chesnok Red
Marbled Purple Stripe
Hardneck | Scapes | Fewer, fat cloves | Bold flavor
Despite the similar name, Marbled Purple Stripe is distinct from standard Purple Stripe garlic. The bulbs generally have 4–8 large, squat cloves rather than the more numerous slender cloves of classic Purple Stripes. Their wrappers tend toward dramatic purple mottling rather than fine stripes. They're vigorous plants, produce scapes and often make impressively large bulbs. This year's variety: Russian Red
Turban
Weakly bolting | Very early | Colorful | Shorter storage
Turbans are an interesting in-between group. They're genetically distinct from the classic hardnecks and can produce a scape under some conditions but behave more like softnecks under others. What really distinguishes them for gardeners is earliness. Turbans mature considerably earlier than many other garlic groups and often have vividly colored clove skins. Their flavor can be fiery when raw and mellower when cooked. They aren't generally the garlic to choose for longest storage.
Rocambole
Hardneck | Rich flavor | Easy-peeling cloves | Scapes | Shorter storage
Rocamboles are the garlics to choose when flavor matters more than maximum storage life. They're prized for their deep, rich, complex garlic flavor—strong and pleasantly spicy when raw, but rounded and savory when cooked. The bulbs typically contain about 6–10 large cloves arranged in a single ring around a rigid central stalk. Their relatively loose clove skins make them exceptionally easy to peel, which is delightful in the kitchen but contributes to their shorter storage life compared with Porcelains and most softneck garlics. Rocamboles produce edible curling scapes in late spring. They're well adapted to climates with cool winters, making them a good choice for fall planting in Portland. This year's variety: Spanish Roja
2026 Garlic Varieties
Purple Stripe • Hardneck
If roasting garlic is part of your life, Chesnok Red deserves garden space. This heirloom from the Republic of Georgia produces striking white bulbs heavily striped with purple, generally with about 8–12 easy-to-peel cloves. Its real distinction is in the kitchen. Chesnok Red retains its garlic character unusually well after cooking instead of simply becoming sweet and anonymous. Roasting produces a smooth, creamy texture and rich, full flavor. It's cold-hardy, produces scapes, and stores about 4–6 months when properly cured.
Choose it for: roasting, baking and full-flavored cooking.
Artichoke • Softneck
This productive, adaptable softneck combines the practical virtues of Artichoke garlic with much prettier bulbs than standard white supermarket garlic. Large heads have white wrappers marked with purple and can contain up to about 20 plump cloves arranged in multiple layers. Because it is a softneck, it doesn't normally produce scapes, and its flexible stems can be braided. It's a particularly sensible choice if you want a productive, versatile cooking garlic with good storage rather than enormous individual cloves.
Choose it for: productivity, braiding, everyday cooking and storage.
Porcelain • Hardneck
This is your big-clove garlic. German Porcelain produces substantial bulbs containing only about 4–7 huge cloves, which makes both planting and cooking pleasantly uncomplicated. Thick wrappers protect the cloves well, and the cloves themselves peel easily. Flavor is rich with moderate heat rather than merely aggressive, making it useful both raw and cooked. It's also a good keeper by hardneck standards, storing around six months under good conditions. As a Porcelain, it will produce edible scapes in spring.
Choose it for: enormous easy-peeling cloves, scapes, strong all-purpose flavor and good hardneck storage.
Artichoke • Softneck
A particularly appropriate choice for a Northwest garden, Inchelium Red is an Artichoke softneck associated with Inchelium, Washington. It produces large bulbs—under good conditions, heads can reach around 3 inches across—with multiple layers of cloves. Its flavor is relatively mild and approachable when fresh but becomes fuller and hotter during storage. Like other Artichokes, it's productive, braidable and a strong keeper.
Choose it for: a reliable Northwest-adapted softneck, large heads, good flavor and long storage.
Porcelain • Hardneck
Musik (also commonly spelled Music) is another Porcelain and produces the wonderfully disproportionate cloves characteristic of the group: typically only 4–6 very large cloves per bulb. Raw, it can be distinctly hot and pungent. Cooking transforms it into something sweeter and richer, making those enormous cloves particularly good for roasting. It's vigorous, cold hardy, easy to peel and produces scapes.
Choose it for: huge cloves, roasting, scapes and robust hardneck flavor.
Silverskin • Softneck • Northwest heirloom
Nootka Rose is a Northwest heirloom associated with the San Juan Islands of Washington. Its creamy-white outer wrappers conceal beautiful cloves streaked mahogany and red. Heads commonly contain around 15–24 cloves. It's a late-maturing Silverskin with considerably more flavor than the word "softneck" might suggest: rich, strong, and assertively garlicky. It also has two major practical virtues—it's excellent for braiding and is an exceptional keeper. Depending on growing, curing and storage conditions, sources describe roughly 6–12 months of storage.
Choose it for: long storage, braiding, strong flavor and its Northwest provenance.
Marbled Purple Stripe • Hardneck
Russian Red is for the gardener who wants their garlic to look and taste emphatically like garlic. It produces vigorous plants and attractive cream-colored bulbs mottled or striped with purple. Inside are relatively few large, purple-brown cloves characteristic of Marbled Purple Stripe garlics.
The flavor is bold, spicy and lingering, standing up particularly well in strongly flavored dishes. Marbled Purple Stripes also require somewhat less winter chilling than many traditional hardnecks, making Russian Red an interesting fit for relatively mild-winter climates.
Choose it for: big cloves, big flavor, scapes and spectacular bulbs.
Rocambole • Hardneck
Spanish Roja is the garlic for people choosing primarily on flavor. It's a classic Rocambole with beautiful red-to-purple clove skins, easy-peeling cloves and the rich, lingering, complex garlic flavor for which Rocamboles are prized. Sources vary in describing the precise degree of heat—growing conditions affect garlic flavor considerably—but consistently characterize Spanish Roja as particularly flavorful.
It produces scapes and usually fewer, larger cloves than softneck garlic. Its weakness is storage compared with your Artichokes and Silverskins, so this is one to enjoy rather than hoard until next summer.
Choose it for: exceptional flavor, easy-peeling cloves and scapes.
Variety | Group | Neck | Cloves | Flavor | Storage | Scapes |
Chesnok Red | Purple Stripe | Hard | 8–12 | Rich, excellent cooked | Medium | Yes |
Early Italian Purple | Artichoke | Soft | Up to ~20 | Versatile | Long | No |
German Porcelain | Porcelain | Hard | 4–7 | Rich, moderately hot | Good | Yes |
Inchelium Red | Artichoke | Soft | 10–20 | Mild → fuller in storage | Long | No |
Musik | Porcelain | Hard | 4–6 | Hot raw, sweet cooked | Good | Yes |
Nootka Rose | Silverskin | Soft | 15–24 | Strong, rich | Very long | No |
Russian Red | Marbled Purple Stripe | Hard | Few, large | Bold, spicy | Medium-good | Yes |
Spanish Roja | Rocambole | Hard | Few, large | Rich, complex | Shorter | Yes |
Huge cloves: German Porcelain or Musik.
Garlic for roasting: Chesnok Red or Musik.
Best keeper: Nootka Rose.
Softneck garlic for braiding: Nootka Rose, Early Italian Purple or Inchelium Red.
Scapes: any of the hardnecks.
Northwest variety: Nootka Rose or Inchelium Red.
Flavor: Spanish Roja or Chesnok Red.
Dependable everyday softneck: Inchelium Red or Early Italian Purple.
Browse our full selection here: East Portland Plant Buying Club – Garlic & Shallots
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