How to Grow Rocambole UK
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In the UK, rocambole goes in the ground mid October to mid December.
Timing is the decision that matters most in the UK: sowing mid October, and that same window applies across all 4 regions covered here.
The short answer
- Plant
- Mid October to mid December
- Biggest risk
- Allium white rot
Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.
Rocambole (Allium sativum var. ophioscorodon)
3 sources cited · Verified
When to Plant Rocambole in the UK
When to plant rocambole in the UK: in Southern England, sow mid October to mid December. Find your area in the table below.
| Region | Sow |
|---|---|
| Southern England | mid October to mid December |
| Midlands | mid October to mid December |
| Northern England | mid October to mid December |
| Scotland | mid October to mid December |
Southern England - detail & sources
RHS: plant in late autumn or early winter. NC State: late October through November (into December further south). Neither source gives UK region-specific dates, and both frame planting around the approach of ground-freeze rather than a fixed calendar date -- one UK-wide autumn/early-winter window applies across all four sub-regions, consistent with how this database already treats Garlic and Elephant Garlic.
Midlands - detail & sources
RHS: plant in late autumn or early winter. NC State: late October through November (into December further south). Neither source gives UK region-specific dates, and both frame planting around the approach of ground-freeze rather than a fixed calendar date -- one UK-wide autumn/early-winter window applies across all four sub-regions, consistent with how this database already treats Garlic and Elephant Garlic.
Northern England - detail & sources
RHS: plant in late autumn or early winter. NC State: late October through November (into December further south). Neither source gives UK region-specific dates, and both frame planting around the approach of ground-freeze rather than a fixed calendar date -- one UK-wide autumn/early-winter window applies across all four sub-regions, consistent with how this database already treats Garlic and Elephant Garlic.
Scotland - detail & sources
RHS: plant in late autumn or early winter. NC State: late October through November (into December further south). Neither source gives UK region-specific dates, and both frame planting around the approach of ground-freeze rather than a fixed calendar date -- one UK-wide autumn/early-winter window applies across all four sub-regions, consistent with how this database already treats Garlic and Elephant Garlic.
Quick Facts
| Factor | Value |
|---|---|
| Soil texture | Chalk, sand or loam (RHS) |
| Drainage | Moist but well-drained, loose and fertile |
| Lifecycle | herbaceous perennial, grown as an annual crop |
| Edible parts | bulbs, scapes |
At a Glance
Growth Stages
| Stage | BBCH | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Planting cloves | 0 | Separate individual cloves from the bulb and plant pointed-end up in late autumn or early winter. RHS: 15cm apart, tips 2.5cm below the surface. NC State: 2-3in (5-7.5cm) deep, 6-8in apart -- both figures kept, not averaged. Needs 4-6 weeks to establish before the ground freezes. |
| Root establishment & cold period | 3 | Roots develop in the cool, moist autumn soil, forming a dense network beneath each clove before winter. A cold period afterward is needed for the bulb to develop quality cloves the following season -- skipping it produces a poor bulb even with everything else right. |
| Scape formation | 6 | Hardneck garlic sends up a distinctive coiled flower stem (scape), unlike softneck types. Many growers cut the scape once it curls to redirect the plant's energy into bulb size rather than seed production -- the scape itself is edible. |
| Harvest & curing | 8 | RHS: harvest early summer once foliage turns yellow. NC State: once about half the leaves have turned brown. Cure in a warm, dry, shaded spot; once leaves are fully dry, trim roots, outer layers and top growth, then store cool and dry, never refrigerated. Rocambole keeps only until mid-winter -- shorter than other garlic types. |
Harvest & Storage
When to pick: RHS: harvest early summer once the foliage turns yellow. NC State: harvest when about half the leaves have started turning brown. Cure in a warm, dry location out of direct sunlight; once leaves are fully dry, trim them along with the roots and outer layers.
Storage
Store cool and dry, never refrigerated. Rocambole keeps the shortest of any garlic type -- only until mid-winter (RHS) -- the trade-off for its stronger flavour compared with longer-storing continental hardnecks and softnecks.
Diseases
Pests
Rocambole, Clove to Scape
Plan your Rocambole planting
When to sow and plant Rocambole depends on your own frost dates. Check the UK vegetable planting calendar. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.
Growing Rocambole in another region
Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.
References
-
Erect perennial bulb, 1.5-2ft tall, 6-9in wide. Hardneck garlics produce a coiled flower stem (scape); rocamboles specifically have alternating large and small cloves, easier to peel and more pungent but shorter storage life than continental hardnecks. Plant cloves 2-3in deep, 6-8in apart; needs 4-6 weeks to establish before the ground freezes. Full sun, loose fertile well-drained soil, mulched. Harvest when about half the leaves have turned brown; cure in a warm, dry, shaded spot, then store cool and dry, never refrigerated. No significant pest/disease problems typical, though bulb rot can develop in overly wet soil and bulb mites may occasionally occur.
-
Hardneck garlic producing strongly flavoured, aromatic white-skinned cloves, up to ten per bulb. Height/spread 0.1-0.5m. RHS hardiness H5 (resilient through most of the UK in severe winters). Full sun, sheltered position; moist but well-drained soil, chalk/sand/loam, acid/alkaline/neutral. Not native to Great Britain or Ireland. Plant individual cloves late autumn/early winter, 15cm apart, tips 2.5cm below the surface -- requires a cold period for quality bulb development. Harvest early summer once foliage turns yellow. May produce a flower stalk; stores only until mid-winter, distinguishing it from softneck types. Susceptible to allium leaf miner, onion fly, onion white rot and downy mildew.
-
US extension source: plant garlic from late September to November, cloves 2-3 in deep in rows 6-10 in apart with cloves 3-4 in apart in the row; each planted clove produces one bulb of 10-15 cloves; harvest when tops begin to yellow or fall over but before completely dry; cure the whole plant in a shady warm spot 1-2 weeks until skins are papery and roots dry; store at 32-40°F, dry, avoiding freezing. States that elephant garlic is very mild, stores poorly and is more closely related to leek than to garlic.
3 independent sources are cited for this crop. Where they disagree - soil pH is the clearest case - every figure is preserved rather than averaged into false precision.
Frequently Asked Questions
When should I sow rocambole in the UK?
In Southern England, from mid October. In Scotland, wait until mid October. Treat these as a guide rather than a fixed date — the governing rule is to sow only once frost risk has passed and temperatures are reliably warm enough.
When do I sow rocambole?
Sow mid October to mid December.
What problems affect rocambole?
Our data links 2 diseases and 2 pests to this crop. See the sections above for each one and how to manage it.
Plan next season before the problems start
Most of the advice on this page comes down to timing and spacing — sowing at the right moment, rotating beds, and giving plants enough airflow. The UK Garden Planner lays your plot out month by month so those decisions are already made before the season starts.
Get the UK Garden Planner →Instant PDF download · Written for UK growing conditions
How this guide is put together
The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against RHS and Met Office guidance. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.
Last verified 2026-09-02
Plan Rocambole by month
The months this guide gives for sowing or planting, each with the full list of jobs for that month in the UK:
More from the same group (the onion family):
Growing advice for your part of the UK
Timing and conditions change a lot inside one country. These guides cover frost dates and growing seasons region by region.
Where To Go From Here
Take this crop from reading into a written plan for your own beds.
Keep going
Plan the next step
Use the printable SoilCommander planner for your region to turn this guide into sowing dates, bed layouts and weekly garden tasks.