We have fresh & locally grown garlic at Andy’s, so we went out to the farm so that you could Meet Your Grower!
We are honored to carry the delicious Eastern Oregon Elephant Garlic and Purple Garlic in our stores now! Grown right over the border in Pendleton, Oregon by a retired school teacher, the flavor of this garlic is truly incredible.
Trina taught us a thing or two about growing the best garlic – she plants her cloves in October, and harvests the finished products in the spring. Trina loves to grow unique varieties, and grew 6 specialty products this year ranging from red to purple garlic. She loves the complexity and range that these sweet little bulbs carry.
But, what brought Trina to garlic in the first place? As a school teacher during the pandemic, Trina found the separation truly heartbreaking. The distance between her and her young students restricted her ability to support them the way they needed, and she found herself feeling a deep loss at the end of her incredible career.
She felt a calling to transition into a new stage in her life, and to reconnect with the world around her to find peace.
After growing up tending to a large garden with her grandparents, Trina realized that growing garlic was the perfect combination of creativity and connection.
Through her commitment to safe produce, Trina’s garlic is chemical free and truly clean. In her second year this year, Trina has fallen in love with growing garlic and loves bringing fresh and delicious products to our community.
Growing garlic is no easy feat, however. Each clove must be hand planted, and sometimes even hand harvested. They are then cured at a cool and consistent temperature for about a month with the use of fans. This curing process is imperative in keeping them long-lasting for storage on our kitchen shelves throughout the year. Some of the cured garlic will be sold, and some will be held back to grow more garlic from their individual cloves.
As any true fan of Elephant Garlic knows, these big bulbs are truly delicious roasted and put into our favorite recipes. But, did you know that Elephant Garlic isn’t actually garlic? Part of the leek family, Elephant Garlic brings its own challenges when growing. You might notice that some elephant garlics have a bump on them – these bumps are called corms. Corms are almost perfect circles and are pulled from the elephant garlic and planted in the ground like a seed. These corms then turn into ‘rounds’ – small, onion-like garlic bulbs. Once those ‘rounds’ are then planted, you can grow a huge elephant garlic! A very interesting, and more challenging aspect to growing these truly tasty treats.
Trina said that what she really wanted from her life was, “peace and tranquility. Something that was good for my soul.” And she found it in the humble and wonderful garlic.
Your destination for nourishing food, we love to partner with our local farms to serve our incredible Walla Walla Valley.
- Andy’s Market
