this is normal for artichoke varieties of garlic
http://www.filareefarm.com/arti.html
the bulbils can be replanted and will grow into normal sized bulbils within two to three years

Should the main bulb be harvested before the stem bulbils form? Or should I let them form and harvest the main bulb and immediately replant the stem bulbils? Will the stem bulbils keep till fall planting if they are part of the curing, braiding, drying process? I am new to garlic, but I just want to do it right and never have to buy garlic again... Thanks!

Should the main bulb be harvested before the stem bulbils form? Or should I let them form and harvest the main bulb and immediately replant the stem bulbils? Will the stem bulbils keep till fall planting if they are part of the curing, braiding, drying process? I am new to garlic, but I just want to do it right and never have to buy garlic again... Thanks!

it's hard to tell from the photo of your garlic how many leaves have died down but if you count the green ones, ideally you should have at least 6 ones intact. Each leaf is a clove wrapper and if you want your bulbs to store well, you don't want all the wrappers to have deteriorated before you harvest. I've found that there can be up to an entire month's variation from one year to another on when I've harvested my garlic and the different types that I've grown span across 8 weeks.
However, if you gently scrape the soil away from around the bulb, you should be able to see how big it is and whether it's ready to harvest. If you still can't tell, gently dig it out and open it up. When you peel the bulb, the cloves should have filled out and the clove skins not too thick - the clove skins will shrink and dry out after they've been cured but it will be obvious if the garlic hasn't finished growing.
The bulbils can be left intact, they continue to mature as the bulb dries out/ cures, you'll see the spathe gradually open and reveal the bulbils which can be big enough to eat.
Don't separate the bulbils, they will dry out if you do. You can plant them again straight away into a pot and they will grow into rounds (undivided bulbs) that you can plant again in autumn. otherwise, just store them until autumn and plant with the rest of your garlic.
I've only been growing garlic for 4 years - beware it can become obsessive:)
This is a great blog by a lady who's been growing garlic for over 30 years and she's still learning! http://barbolian.com/topics/garlic/growing-garlic/

Great advice above from Zqnmegan.
I also get some of those throwbacks in my softneck varieties. They are trying to revert back to their hardneck tendencies as they've been bred not to make scapes anymore.

Unless you really like a new project or are short on cash for seed garlic, I wouldn't worry much about the bulbil formation. When I've grown out bulbils before I tend to lose them in the weeds as they're so small the first year. Now I just ignore them and replant large cloves each season.

-Mark

thanks Mark:)
Megan

This happened to us too. We had a very wet month of June. I think it bolted... but even more surprising was my Spanish Roja grew just like a softneck!! No scapes and it fell over at the end of June. Vey small bulbs and some not even cloved. Thinking the moisture gave it problems... The spanish Roja is more susceptible to disease??

greentreegal- Is this your first year growing Spanish Roja? And if so, did you happen to buy it from Territorial? A couple other people who bought Spanish Roja from Territorial had the same problem about it not growing scapes (link below). It seems that Territorial got their seed garlic mixed up or mislabeled.

Rodney

Here is a link that might be useful: Spanish Roja Garlic

Before saying that Territorial messed up, someone that bought Roja seed from them should confirm whether the garlic they originally got had a hardneck or not.
As I said in the other post, there could be other reasons why it didn't scape.
-Mark

More on BULBILS.

I have planted bulbils one year. As mentioned, they grow into a single undivided garlic, sometimes called ONION GARLIC. I like them and would not replant them. They are just unusual. You just peel off one wrap and chop. I have heard that in some place in China they grow a lot of them because of the ease of peeling. Is that true ?

Hello Seysonn there is an old thread here about the chinese single clove garlic.

Here is a link that might be useful: Single clove garlic

Thanks zqnmegan for the link

The more I read the more I got confused.
-- some say that it is grwon from ordinary garlic, under certain conditions.

--- some say it is not actually a GARLIC but another member in allium family, more close to leeks than garlic.

--- some say it is garlic grown from garlic bulbils (on the tip of
escape)

-- some say that if you harvest regular garlic early, you will get onion garlic.

--- some say that if you plant the very small cloves you will get single clove garlic.
There is no way to sort all these out.

But I have harvested some, FOR SURE, myself. I am sure that I just planted regular garlics. So I know for sure that there is such a thing as ROUND single clove garlic.

hello Seysonn, I don't warn to hijack this thread so have answered your questions in the single clove garlic thread:)