Egyptian onion or elephant garlic: what is Rocambole, how is it grown and stored?

Rocambole garlic is a vegetable crop that, unlike conventional varieties, has a pleasant taste and smell. But the main difference between onion and garlic, as gardeners often call it, is its unprecedentedly large size.

Babies grow on the garlic head, which can also be used for planting

Garlic "Rocambole"

"Elephant Garlic" Rocambole

Garlic tops "Rocambole"

This variety has a lot of names - “elephant garlic”, Egyptian onion, Spanish garlic, hair onion, giant garlic onion.

Description of the variety Rocambole

Rocambole is a perennial plant belonging to the lily family. Its above-ground part is very similar to a regular leek, since Rocambole is a hybrid of this onion and garlic. That is why it is often called onion or onion garlic.

The main features of Rocambole garlic:

• Heads of both the first and second years are suitable for food. Although the first-year ones are small, they are in no way inferior in taste to the large second-year ones.
• One bulb of the first year is larger than the largest garlic bulbs.
• The average yield is 3 kg per 1 sq. m.

In the first year of life, the crop forms large bulbs consisting of one tooth. Their weight is 45-50 g. If the climate is warm enough, then in the second year of life the crop produces a bulb much larger than the previous one, weighing up to 80 g per clove. This is a heat-loving crop; under favorable circumstances, the bulb grows up to 500 g.

Description of culture:

• Trunk. Thick, high density. Height 80-120 cm - depends on soil fertility.
• Leaves. Dense and wide, pale green in color, with a silvery, waxy coating. On the stem there are 6-9 leaves 30-60 cm long and 3-6 cm wide. The leaf blades are flat, with longitudinal stripes, pointed towards the apex. The leaves have a slight bend in the center.
• Inflorescences. Large, attractive - the plant is often used as a decorative one. The inflorescence is spherical, collected from small purple flowers. There are no seeds in inflorescences.
• Bulb. In the third year it usually has from 4 to 6 cloves. The diameter of the head is 6-10 cm. The length of one segment can reach 15 cm.

Onion garlic blooms in July. The plant develops a flower-bearing arrow 1 m long. In two-year-old garlic, stolons with baby bulbs of 1.5-4 g each form on the bottom. They have a yellow-brown husk, in contrast to the large white onion. If the stolons are short, then the children are tightly pressed to the cloves and covered with the white husk of the mother’s bulb.

Application

Onion-garlic rocambole is very useful - all the information about it can be found by studying its chemical composition. The product contains phytoncides, essential oils, a rich range of minerals (in particular, iron, potassium, zinc, calcium, selenium). The bulbs contain a lot of vitamins E, K, C, and group B. The calorie content is 149 kcal/100 g. The onion-garlic hybrid contains protein (6.3 g), carbohydrates (31 g), and fats (0.5 g).

Related article:

Proven Tips for Growing Garlic

In cooking, the product is used as a spicy seasoning for meat, vegetables, and fish. Cloves and leaves are added to salads, they are marinated separately or together with other vegetables.

Alcohol tincture is used as a remedy. Proportion: 100 g of gruel per 500 ml of vodka. 2 weeks after the tincture is delivered, it is filtered and used three times a day, 15 drops, diluted in a glass of milk. This treatment is indicated for anemia and atherosclerosis. A rinse solution (10 drops per 1 cup of warm water) is used as an antiseptic for stomatitis and other diseases of the oral cavity.

What types and varieties are there?

There are two types of garlic onions:

• in the selection of which the hair bow was used.
• in the selection of which grape onions were used.

In the Russian Federation, only two varieties of onion garlic are officially recognized:

• Pearl. Frost-resistant variety bred by Moscow breeders. The crop is mid-season, suitable for cultivation in all regions of the Russian Federation. It is cultivated similarly to winter garlic. It has long arrows - up to 60 cm, wide leaves - 3 cm. The heads are flattened, with white scales. Weight – 50-55 g. Number of cloves – 4-6 pieces. The pulp is yellowish, with a pungent taste. From 1 sq. m harvest up to 2 kg of garlic onions.
• Janissary. New winter-hardy variety. Suitable for all regions of Russia. Leaves are 40 cm long, 3.5 cm wide. Weight – 95 g. Number of cloves – 6 pieces. The scales of the bulb are creamy, and the flesh is yellowish.

Our gardeners grow another variety of Belarusian origin - white elephant . It was bred specifically for regions with harsh winters. It does not have flower arrows. Bulb weight – 150-200 g. Number of cloves – 6-7. The flesh when cut is yellowish. The variety is resistant to fusarium. Productivity – 3 kg per 1 sq. m.

Plant in spring or fall

Huge heads reach a mass of 500-700 g. Photo: sornyakov.net

Rocambole garlic - photo, description of the species:

1. Rocambole garlic (lat. Lucchese Rocambole) - giant Spanish garlic or Egyptian onion is increasingly conquering the gardens of lovers of exotic crops. Hair onion is a perennial plant from the lily family, similar in appearance to leeks. Depending on growing conditions, the above-ground part grows up to 1 m in height with wide, flat leaves with a waxy coating, reminiscent of a Japanese samurai sword.
2. The flower arrow blooms in July as a spherical inflorescence with small purple flowers. Seeds practically never set.
3. The head is formed in the ground. If cultivation begins with a baby, it will have a bulb head without cloves. The diameter of the root crop is 6 - 10 cm, weight up to 100 g. In the second year, a garlic head with 3 - 5 cloves and 10 - 20 children is formed from a round head.
4. For propagation, all 3 types of planting material are used - babies, round bulbs and large cloves. When planting, you should follow the arrangement of the cloves and choose a favorable place for planting.
5. The taste of rocambole differs from ordinary garlic and onions. The taste is more delicate with a spicy note and garlic aroma. It is used in the preparation of dishes from almost all cuisines of the world. It is valued for its excellent resistance to frost and good shelf life while retaining all its useful qualities.

Growing onion garlic in fertile soil.
Photo: dachnaya-zhizn.ru The author of the video recommends planting onions and garlic at a distance of 20 cm from each other. Before planting the children, it is necessary to prepare the seed material. Using pliers, carefully prick the protective scales, and then plant them in the ground:

Value and benefit

Greens and giant garlic bulbs have a rich mineral and vitamin composition. The taste of Rocambole harmoniously combines notes of onion and garlic. Onion garlic does not give off a characteristic garlic smell after consumption. It contains a lot of vitamins A, C, E. The vegetable is rich in carotene and iron. It contains antiseptics and essential oils. Energy value – 150 kcal per 100 g.

Benefits of Rockambol:

• acts as a natural antibiotic;
• tones blood vessels, dilates them, makes them more elastic, improves blood flow;
• prevents the formation of blood clots;
• reduces the content of bad cholesterol;
• improves the functioning of the digestive system;
• strengthens the immune system;
• restores a weakened body;
• cleanses the body of toxins;
• improves appetite, activates the production of gastric juice;
• strengthens gums;
• strengthens hair and promotes its growth - when used externally;
• relieves nasal congestion - thanks to the secreted essential oils.

Rocambol, while helping with various diseases, cannot be the main medicine. Due to its pungency, this vegetable is consumed in moderation. Possible side effects:

• headache;
• blurred vision;
• diarrhea;
• skin irritations;
• vascular spasms.

Contraindicated:

• children under 3 years old;
• pregnant women;
• people with diseases of the kidneys, stomach, gall bladder;
• with internal bleeding.

Rocambole garlic: beneficial properties

In terms of the number of useful elements, rockambole is in no way inferior to ordinary garlic, and in some areas is even ahead of it.

The rich chemical composition explains the beneficial properties of the crop:

1. thinning the blood, lowering cholesterol levels, strengthening the walls of blood vessels and improving their elasticity, preventing the formation of blood clots;
2. improvement of appetite, activation of gastric juice formation;
3. fight against worms;
4. disinfection of skin areas;
5. antiviral effect.

Preparing for landing

Rocambole is grown like simple garlic. The soil and planting material are prepared for planting. It is better to buy domestic planting material for planting - it tolerates frost better. Foreign varieties are suitable only for regions with warm climates.

The soil

In the middle zone and in more northern regions, Rocambole is planted in areas illuminated by the sun throughout the day. Due to shading, the number of cloves in the head decreases and diseases appear.

Features of preparing a site for planting Rocambole:

• The best option is neutral soils. If the soils are acidic, they are alkalized during autumn digging.
• When digging, humus or compost is added to the soil - 5-6 kg per 1 square meter. m, wood ash (500 g) and bone meal (150-200 g).
• The soil in the beds is loosened to a depth of 20-25 cm. Giant garlic produces good yields in high beds.
• Culture is demanding of predecessors. Prefers legumes and melons, cabbage, cucumbers. Undesirable predecessors are garlic, onions and potatoes, since the pests remaining in the soil after them will actively attack Rocambole.

Planting material

Children, cloves or annual bulbs are prepared for planting. Usually up to 15 children grow on one bulb. Planting material is placed in the refrigerator for a month. After hardening, the material is disinfected - the teeth are placed in a solution of potassium permanganate for 20 minutes. Instead of potassium permanganate, you can use boiled ash - for 1 liter of boiling water you need a glass of ash. Boiling time – 10 minutes. When the broth has cooled, the cloves are placed in it.

Subtleties of growing crops

The technology for planting and growing onion garlic does not require additional knowledge. All work is carried out on the same schedule as when planting conventional varieties of garlic.

Planting in spring

For latitudes with cold climatic conditions, spring planting is more suitable. Planting the crop in open ground begins after the snow melts.

The crop can be grown from seeds or pups, cloves and bulbs. Before planting in the ground, planting material is treated with a solution of manganese and a growth stimulator.

1. Choose a site for the garden bed that is sunny, protected from drafts and gusty winds.
2. The soil is dug up and mixed with organic matter and mineral additives.
3. Lime or ash is added to soil with a high acid content.
4. Planting holes or harrows are dug in the beds, in which the prepared planting material is placed.
5. The distance between plantings is maintained within 15-20 centimeters, between rows up to 40 centimeters.
6. The bulbs are buried into the ground by 10 centimeters, the seed children to a depth of no more than 4-5 centimeters, the cloves by 7-8 centimeters.
7. Planting material is sprinkled with soil and irrigated abundantly.

Expert opinion

Stanislav Pavlovich

Gardener with 17 years of experience and our expert

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Important! Egyptian onions grow and develop best in loose, fertile soil, so the beds are dug to a depth of at least 20-25 centimeters.

Planting before winter

In autumn, it is recommended to plant the crop 15-20 days before the onset of the first frost. Seeds are prepared and placed on pre-arranged beds. To prevent the plantings from freezing in severe frosts, lay a thick layer of mulch from humus or peat mixed with sawdust on top.

Landing requirements

Rocambole is planted at any time - in spring or autumn. If the region has very harsh winters, then it is better to choose spring planting, since garlic planted in the fall runs the risk of freezing. If you plant garlic in the fall, you need to insulate the planting.

Landing requirements:

• Pre-winter. Planting is done three weeks before the onset of frost. During this time, the garlic will take root, but will not have time to germinate. For the middle zone, the suitable planting time is in the first half of October.
• Spring. Planting material is planted as early as possible - enough for the soil to warm up to +6 °C. Short-term frosts are not scary for onion garlic; it will take root well at +3...+5 °C. The recommended planting time for the middle zone is from mid-April to early May.

Step-by-step instructions for planting

Step-by-step instructions for autumn (pre-winter) planting:

• The planting pattern depending on the choice of planting material is in Table 1.
• After planting, the bed is sprinkled with mulch - for example, straw or sawdust. Mulching protects the onion garlic from low temperatures and retains moisture.
• Winter Rocambole is ready for harvesting in the first half of August.
• When preparing the beds, the furrows are made deeper than during spring planting.
• Unlike spring planting, planting material can do without disinfection;
• 6-8 cm of humus is placed at the bottom of the beds.

In this video you can see how to properly plant Rocambole garlic:

Table 1

Step-by-step instructions for spring (spring) planting:

• A month before planting, the seeds are hardened and disinfected. Planting is carried out according to the 20 x 25 pattern - between planting material and rows, respectively.
• If the weather is dry, the beds are watered.
• Spring Rocambole is harvested in the second half of September.

Use in cooking

Rocambole onions are widely used in various national cuisines for preparing spicy hot sauces and preserving vegetables. The leaves and bulbs of the plant are used to prepare various salads and as a seasoning for meat and fish dishes.

Reviews from the best chefs indicate that rocambole garlic adds piquancy and a unique aroma to any dish. This ingredient goes well with chicken.

Spanish chicken recipe In order to prepare an original dish, you will need the following ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken;
• 600 g rocambole;
• 50 g soy sauce;
• 50 g sesame oil;
• a little garlic vinegar;
• 150 g port wine;
• a little sage and thyme.

All the spicy ingredients must be mixed and a marinade prepared, in which the chicken, previously cut into pieces, is placed for about a day. The container is placed in the refrigerator and after the expiration date the meat is fried in a frying pan until golden brown. Then place it in the remaining marinade and simmer over low heat for about 1.5 hours.

How to care?

Rocambole is not only similar to garlic in appearance, but also in agricultural technology. There is nothing special about growing onion garlic. Caring for the crop comes down to watering, fertilizing and loosening.

Top dressing

The culture is responsive to fertilizing. The task of vegetable growers is to grow large and tasty bulbs, and this requires fertilizers. Recommended fertilizing:

• Immediately after germination, nitrogen fertilizers are applied. For example, ammonium nitrate - 10-20 g per 1 sq. m.
• When 4 leaves are formed. Bird droppings (1 cup) and urea (1 tbsp) are dissolved in a bucket of water (10 l). For 1 sq. m add 3 liters of this mixture.
• 2-3 weeks after the second feeding, the planting is fertilized with a nitrophoska solution. 2 tbsp. l. diluted in a bucket of water - this amount is added per 1 sq. m.
• During planting - phosphorus-potassium fertilizers. A solution of wood ash is suitable for this purpose - 1 glass diluted in 10 liters. For 1 sq. m area, add 5 liters of solution.

Watering

Rockambole loves moisture. Young animals especially need watering. Thanks to abundant moisture, the culture forms a voluminous bulb. The beds with onion garlic are watered 1-2 times a week. The frequency of watering depends on weather conditions. If it is cloudy, one watering per week is enough. The best way to irrigate this crop is drip irrigation.

Weeding

Weeding and loosening are mandatory activities when growing Rocambole. The soil is loosened as soon as the seedlings emerge. Do this carefully, trying not to damage the fragile sprouts and their roots. Thanks to loosening, the soil is enriched with oxygen necessary for the roots, and at the same time weeds are eliminated. They loosen the soil after rainfall or watering, not only between rows, but also directly near the necks of plants.

Flower shoots are removed - this helps to increase the mass of the bulb. There are still no seeds in the inflorescence.

GROWING ROCAMBOL - PLANTING AND CARE. TIPS OF GARDENERS.

ROCAMBALL: WHEN TO PLANT IT?

Hair onion (Allium scorodoprasum), also known as rocambole or elephant garlic, is often confused with garlic.

Or they call it an onion-garlic hybrid.

However, this is a separate species, and it has its own agricultural technology.

2 varieties of rocambole were included in the State Register of Breeding Achievements of the Russian Federation: Zhemchug and Janissary. Rocambole differs from garlic in its less pungent taste, less pungent odor, wider leaf blade and ability to form babies, which garlic does not have. The taste and aroma of rocambole is a combination of garlic and onion taste and smell, sometimes there is even a taste of radish. Young leaves are used for food, fresh and salted, and the bulbs are also preserved.

Rocambole is more capricious than garlic. It is less winter-hardy and is very demanding on soil fertility, but its yield is much greater.

Like other onion plants, rocambola seedlings contain 2-3 times more vital microelements than bulbs and single-toothed bulbs dug up in July.

Rocambole children are planted both in early spring and autumn. By autumn, the babies will have formed medium-sized one-toothed teeth. They do not need to be dug up (the so-called non-transplant culture). Then next year they will produce either large single cloves or medium-sized bulbs with several cloves; this depends on the quality of agricultural technology. And in the third year you will be able to dig up large bulbs weighing 130-155 g, and sometimes up to 250 g.

The soil is carefully prepared for both spring plantings and winter crops: they dig it up, add peat or humus at the rate of 2-3 buckets per 1 square meter. m and 50 g of double superphosphate and potassium salt. Be sure to observe crop rotation! Good predecessors for rockambole are root vegetables, pumpkin and cabbage crops. But you shouldn’t plant it after onions, garlic, legumes and potatoes.

Sometimes children are planted as seedlings at the end of March, transplanted into the ground in the second ten days of May. Chives and single-claws are planted immediately in a permanent place to a depth of 8-10 cm, large planting material is even deeper, up to 12 cm. Winter plantings are mulched with peat, dry leaves, spruce branches, straw and even stems from perennial ornamental plants. This increases the winter hardiness of rocambole. In the spring, the mulch is removed (and not used at all on spring plantings) so that it does not interfere with the warming of the soil.

During the growing season, make sure that the soil does not dry out, water it in a timely manner, weed and loosen the rows. At approximately the same time as garlic, rocambola develops a flower arrow with a spherical inflorescence similar to the inflorescence of a leek. It is not necessary to remove it; all the nutrients still go into the bulb. Rocambola does not produce seeds.

Hair onions are fertilized in the spring, winter plantings immediately after the snow melts: ammonium nitrate is added to the row spacing at the rate of 50-60 g/sq. m. Again after 2 weeks. At the end of May, complex mineral fertilizer is used (for example, azophosphate -60 g/sq. m). The last feeding is carried out in the first ten days of June, at the moment the cloves begin to form in the bulb.

For spring plantings, the scheme is slightly different. The first fertilizing (ammonium nitrate at the rate of 25-30 g/sq. m) is carried out 5-7 days after emergence. The second - after 10 days. And in early June, nitroammophos or azophoska is added at 20-30 g/sq.m. m.

The productivity of hair onions is quite high, up to 3-4 kg of bulbs per 1 sq. m (subject to placement of up to 30 one-toothed or up to 45 children in this area).

Toothworts and moths begin to “wake up” 35-45 days before planting in the ground. They are taken out of storage and kept at a temperature not lower than 18-20°. Planted as soon as the soil allows (in the Moscow region, mainly in the first ten days of May).

Rocambole planted before winter is more productive; it grows earlier, ahead of spring plants. Therefore, it is harvested at the end of July and beginning of August (spring harvest at the beginning of September). The degree of ripeness is determined by the leaves: as soon as the lower ones have dried out and the upper ones have turned yellow, the time has come. If you are late with harvesting, you will get so-called crumbling, the bulbs will grow again, take root, or even go deeper into the ground, making harvesting difficult. In any case, this will have a bad effect on storage.

After harvesting, the crop is dried in a garden bed or in a well-ventilated place under a canopy or in an attic for 10 days. During this time, the bulbs dry out and ripen.

Diseases, pests and prevention

Garlic onions are affected by common diseases and pests of onions and garlic:

• Fusarium. It especially often affects areas where the predecessor is potato. If fusarium appears, the diseased plants are removed and Rocambole is not planted in this place for 3-4 years.
• White rot. To prevent rot, acidic soils are limed, reducing the dose of nitrogen fertilizers.
• Rust. Prevention is similar to fusarium.
• Onion moth, onion fly, nematodes, root mites, thrips.

Methods for controlling diseases and pests are in Table 2.

table 2

General preventive measures for plant protection:

• Selection of healthy planting material.
• Cleaning and burning of plant residues.
• Replanting in one area only after 4 years.
• Disinfection of planting material in a fungicide with a 2-3% concentration.
• Thorough drying of the children after harvesting - the sun's rays kill fungal spores.
• Before planting, the soil is treated with Bordeaux mixture 1% or Fitosporin 15%.

Fungicide treatment is stopped 3 weeks before harvest.

Harvest and storage

Harvesting of giant garlic begins when the lower leaves dry out and the upper ones turn yellow and droop - this happens in the month of September. Storage Features:

• Garlic pulled out of the ground is tied in bunches and dried, hanging upside down.
• Shake off the dried soil, cut off the leaves - leaving a small tail, and store them.
• Store onion garlic in a dry place at a temperature of 9 °C.

Rocambole has good keeping quality - if you provide it with the proper conditions, it retains commercial quality until February, and then begins to germinate.

In Rocambole, not only annual bulbs and biennial heads are eaten - they are eaten fresh, dried, salted and pickled, but also young leaves. Onion garlic is widely used in cooking.

How to distinguish elephant garlic from relatives

Rocambole-elephant onions differ from garlic, edible and decorative onions in several characteristics by which they need to be recognized when purchasing:

• the average weight of the heads is 200-300 g, under ideal conditions - several times larger (a harvest weighing from 300 g is considered good), even single cloves never weigh less than 50 g (while large genuine garlic is limited to a maximum of 150 g, onions grape variety - 100 g, and hair onion variety - 50 g);
• even the babies are massive - they should weigh at least 2-5 g, but the main landmark is the orange color of the shell and high germination;
• the number of prongs is small, from 4 to 8, most often - 5-6 (division into 2 prongs indicates a substitution for anzurs or Suvorov's bow);
• the aroma is weak, delicately reminiscent of garlic - not sharp and not irritating, with subtle onion overtones;
• the taste is only slightly spicy, unexpectedly soft and delicate, with a faint hint of onion, garlic;
• the cloves are easy to chew raw (only grape onions have a delicate taste, but with a talc aftertaste).

Huge heads replace onions and garlic in various dishes of world cuisine.

And a few more features that are characteristic of our rocambole garlic:

• the stems of “rocambole” are several times more powerful than garlic;
• it can self-sow, the children often fall off and sprout spontaneously;
• the content of essential oils, phytoncides, vitamins, and other useful substances, as well as properties, especially preventive and immunostimulating, differ significantly from garlic (elephant garlic is often compared in its properties to leeks);
• Young greens are no less valuable and edible.

This onion can be considered not only as edible, but also as decorative - forming growing families and groups without digging.

Reviews from gardeners

★★★★★
Korovin E.P., Luga. I loved rocambole for its taste - it is milder than garlic.
The heads do not deteriorate until the next harvest. I plant it in the fall and grow it like winter garlic. I plant with both teeth and children. You have to mulch the beds - this crop is not as frost-resistant as simple garlic. In our family, besides me, Rocambole has no more fans. Everyone prefers regular garlic; they say that onion garlic has an unpleasant taste. But I sell it well at the market - there is always a demand for huge heads of garlic - they are sold out instantly. ★★★★★
Irina Semyonovna P., Yuryev-Polsky. I planted this Rocambole like a flower, I didn’t even know it was edible.
I bought single-pronged bulbs for planting. Having received the first harvest, I began to propagate garlic by children and single cloves. Not all of the little babies sprouted, maybe because they didn’t clear the husks. But the bulbs produced a decent harvest - bulbs weighing 300 g each. Hide

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Rocambole is almost exotic for domestic gardens. The culture deserves attention - it has a pleasant taste and many advantages over ordinary garlic. Growing it is not difficult, which means there is every chance to try giant onion garlic from your own garden.

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Onion garlic propagation

The crop is grown by pups that appear from below on a two-year-old plant. Heads planted in April will be able to produce a small bulb by autumn. Although Rocambole likes the cold, prolonged frosts interfere with its development and therefore temperatures of -15 °C will kill the seedlings. This must be taken into account when calculating the landing time.

Onion garlic babies