By DOUG GRAVES
Ohio Correspondent

HOLLAND, Ohio — While most growers in northwestern Ohio are preparing to harvest corn and soybeans this fall, one grower in Lucas County is using a small garden fork to harvest her crop.
Sharron Cygnor says her niche is growing garlic. So much garlic, that she calls her residence the Crazy Horse Garlic Farm.

“We take pride in growing gourmet garlic,” said Cygnor, who often gets help from her husband and two children. “I still have my day job, so I take care of the garlic on weeknights and weekends.”

Cygnor’s farm is located 15 miles west of Toledo, on land that is a rich, sandy loam mixture. Corn, soybeans and horses dot the landscape of Lucas County, so it’s not unusual that neighbors think her venture is a bit odd.

“Our farm was originally set up for horses, with fenced pastures, corrals, a small woods and a pond,” Cygnor said. “In addition to owning three horses, I also boarded horses for a short period of time.

“There was more pasture than what the horses needed, so a few years back I began to investigate small crop farming. After much research and consideration, growing garlic was decidedly the natural choice.”

Cygnor formed a garden area, or test plot, to see how garlic would grow in the area. She started with seed stock of Bogatyr, Georgian Crystal and Bavarian Purple, purchasing the seeds from some of the finest organic garlic growers in the country.

As she progressed she added more rows of garlic. Today she grows one-fourth acre of garlic on her 11-acre farm.

“And did it ever expand,” Cygnor said. “I had large bulbs with big fat cloves, bursting with flavor. Due to the increase in demand I have now expanded to include 12 varieties of garlic.”

Cygnor is a believer in fresh garlic, not that sold in packages.

“Garlic you get in stores, especially those found in a stocking, are imported,” she warns. “In order to travel this garlic is treated with bromide gas and in some cases, it’s bleached. This is done so they don’t sprout during shipping.”

Though her farm is not certified organic, Cygnor uses organic farming methods to produce high quality bulbs. She tills the sandy loam to incorporate organic compost (from her three horses and chickens). Bulbs are planted in raised beds as garlic cannot be soaking in water.

“Some garlic is pungent, some is better roasted,” she said. “Some is better eaten raw, while some garlic is mild. Some even helps lower your blood pressure.”

Cygnor plants the bulbs in October, in rows that measure 2-by-80-feet. The bulbs are planted four inches deep and 6-8 inches apart. She mulches using grass clippings and leaves. “Garlic hates weeds, so the mulch helps a lot,” she said.

Harvesting occurs in late June.

“This crop is very labor-intensive,” she said. “Every process is tended by hand, from separating cloves, planting each clove, mulching, weeding and watering. When it’s harvest time, the bulbs are dug up with a garden fork, tied into bundles of eight to 10 and hung in the barn loft to dry and cure. After curing the bulbs are cleaned, trimmed and sorted by hand and placed in storage trays.”

Perhaps the only drawback to growing this crop, she said, are the pesky moles.

“Moles can cut off the areas under the garlic,” Cygnor said. “Moles won’t eat the garlic, they just tear up the beds and tunnel underneath. White rot is another worry when it comes to growing garlic.”

With few obstacles in growing this crop, she is thinking of expanding her mail-order business. “If I expand I would need more help,” she said. “I’d like to expand, but then I’d need more buildings for drying.

“My ultimate goal is to be sustainable, but it’s not quite sustainable just yet.”

Cygnor personally processes, packages and ships each order. Her garlic varieties include Bavarian Purple (large, spicy, used in cooking, grows well in northern climates), Bogatyr (purple stripes, fiery hot raw), Burgundy (best grown in southern climates), Chinese Purple (strong taste, intense heat), Cuban Purple (excellent eaten raw, rich flavor, used in salsas), Georgian Crystal (fat cloves, mild flavor), Korean Mountain (early harvested bulb, long storing), Persian Star (elongated cloves with a bite), Spanish Roja (used by major chefs, holds up well in cooking), Zemo (large cloves, lingering effect), Lorz Itanian (large bulbs, soft-neck variety) and Nootka Rose (colorful, popular in garlic braids).

Crazy Horse Garlic Farm is located at 1402 S. Crissey Road in Holland, Ohio. Cygnor can be reached at 479-867-7826.