If dry I water my garlic in after planting. I usually don't mulch till mid-late November unless real cold sets in before. I just watch the soil and only water when needed. Then usually won't water at all from around Dec 1st till the garlic starts growing in the spring. If it goes into the winter with good moisture and is mulched well then it should be ok till it starts growing. If I get a warm up in Jan or if the winter stays warm then I will check the soil a few times in Jan and Feb to make sure it is ok. Unless it really dries out I don't water during Jan and most of Feb. The further south you are the longer you may need to water in the fall and you may need to start a little earlier in the spring. Jay

I am very far south in OK and I don't water the garlic too much because I have clay soil that holds moisture forever. I do water it in fall to get it going, and do keep an eye on the soil moisture. Since clay holds water well, I rarely have to water it unless it is a dry year and rain isn't falling.

The key thing to do is to check your soil (just stick your finger into the soil) and be sure it is moist. You don't want it too wet because fungal diseases and rot can set in, but you also don't want for it to be bone-dry. Aim for consistently moist soil and your garlic should be fine.

In Oklahoma the growing season is fall through early summer. You plant in fall, as you did, and it eventually sprouts and grows. Even before you see green sprouts above the soil surface, the garlic is sprouting roots and getting ready to sprout leaves. Once the leaves are up, use them as your guide. They will be a nice healthy green. If the ground is too dry, their color may fade to a dull green and the foliage might start looking a little dry. That would be a clue to check the moisture level in the soil.

In my garden, garlic is one of the easiest things to grow. I basically plant it and forget about it. That doesn't mean I neglect it, but rather that it does perfectly fine with little to no help from me. Normally we get enough rain from fall through spring in southcentral OK to keep the garlic perfectly happy and healthy with no human assistance.

Garlic must be easy to grow. This is my third year to try growing it and it looks pretty good. My neighbor gave me some elephant garlic 3 seasons ago and it has come up and grown well each year. I was able to have enough to plant two 20' rows this fall. The first was planted on 10-1, and some of it is 3" tall now. The garlic I planted about 7-10 days later was some I bought at the store and is just now coming up.

Larry