Harvesting Of Purple Garlic In Las Pedroñeras (cuenca)

LAS PEDROÑERAS, CUENCA, CASTILL, SPAIN - JULY 07: A person sorts peeled purple garlic cloves into jars at the Coopaman cooperative's packing and processing plant on July 7, 2022, in Las Pedroñeras, Cuenca, Castilla La-Mancha, Spain. Coopaman is a cooperative with more than 35 years of experience, which since its origins has marketed garlic from Las Pedroñeras to place them as one of the flagship products of Castilla La-Mancha and Spain. Garlic is planted in December and harvested at the end of the growing season, at the end of June, July and in some cases, until August. The most common way of harvesting garlic is by hand, although mechanized harvesting is used to save costs. After harvesting, the garlic is kept on the ground for a period of time so that the bulbs lose moisture. The yield of purple garlic from Las Pedroñeras is between nine and ten tons per hectare and can reach 13 tons, depending on external and internal production factors and crop management during the growing season. Spain is the main garlic producer in Europe, and more than half of the area where garlic is planted in Spain is located in Castilla La Mancha, specifically in the province of Cuenca, where it has the Protected Geographical Indication Purple Garlic. (Photo By Rey Sotolongo/Europa Press via Getty Images)