Good News - And Terrible News - For The Garlic Railway 

its tragic to lose so much garlic, but I'm glad to see the railway making itself so useful

It might be a good idea that after you have the garlic drying shed emptied out to spray it down with a chlorine bleach solution.

Watching this outside while it's raining here is kind of surreal. I am so glad you are getting to utilize that railway as intended. My mom has a drying shead that she uses for garlic, but there is a blower installed and a dehumidifier. The blower pushes air through ducts under racks that stack together. The racks have wire to hold the garlic and let the dirt fall through. The racks are rotated and eventually the garlic is fully cured. The trick is to stagger the blower on and off every 2 hours. That way the moisture has a chance to reach the outside of the garlic again between drying. The humidity is probably what got to your garlic, no matter how well they were covered from the rain. Most of the time her lost garlic is due to moose or bear roaming the property. :)

Maybe an insurance policy on your crop would be worth while? Next year if it rains you could cover your drying roof with black plastic or paint and it may warm up inside even under clouds.

Doing a heavy treatment with lime sulfur over the winter might be a good idea to try to knock down any spores that might be left in the soil. Not sure what specific type of rot you experienced but it looks a lot like Botrytis bulb rot to me. I had a lot of trouble with that when trying to grow garlic in Southern California because it is so warm so much of the year.

I work 9 to 5 in an office. With the rain and the dark evenings I haven't been able to get much done on the Farm. Add to that the damage from Storm Ciaran then we are about a year behind now. I feel you pain.

Here in New York we also had a record breaking amount of rain in July. Not as much as you but some of our garlic crop also had an issue with rot. This was the first year I had seen this.

the railroad is such a smart idea

Takes a lot of perspective to respond to all that with "interesting times, eh?"

Sorry to hear about your crop. I do love seeing dray horses working, it reminds me of growing up in Edinburgh when milk and beer was still delivered by horse and dray.

I love your cheerful, happy attitude. It shows that Hardwork is the key to happiness. sedentary lifestyles lead to boredom and unhappiness

I brought this up on a previous and I know that you are resistant to the idea but humor me and try using 5 gallon buckets instead of wheelbarrows. The center of gravity is lower. They are easier to handle. One person can handle a 3/4 full bucket. You dump and spread in one throw, no second shoveling. Try loading up your cart with 5 gallon buckets once and see if you like it better. Justin

A farmers life can be a hard one! I have been told that it rains every day in Ireland ...... just the rates and direction of rainfall change! ;o) It is a pity you can't use the rain for anything useful (other than watering stuff) I give you a 9.5 for the "Wheeeeee" whilst riding the railway though!

What a shame on the garlic storage - unfortunately, I haven't got a magic solution. No doubt, you'll find a way around this challenge, as well. Thanks for sharing. Greetings from Sweden 🇸🇪.

I live in Devon ( SW UK ) - we basically have the same weather as you up there, I feel your pains! so do the local farmers...

You should put a small bell at the end of the track at the garlic bed so when the garden railway gets to the end it will go "ding"

i'd love it if the people you are friends with and who we see in these videos gave us some introductions! they all seem so helpful and kind but we only really know you and your wife :D

Why is it that I'm never bored watching this channel, Tim & Sandra? You 2 are very interesting indeed! I worry with you about the garlic. I hope things improve. 🙏🏻 ❤

Ooof. That almost looks like black rot (we had a fun little round with it in Pennsylvania a few years back, after Wallmart accidentally imported it with some tomato seedlings from down south- we just let the garden lay fallow for a year, and it froze over the winter).

Good luck with next years crop.

Top part of the north island of New Zealand where I live has had massive rain over the last 18 months. Last summer was just one big tropical storm. Hoping we get a summer this year, the rivers are up, as is the ground water.

Sorry to see some rotten garlic, I wish you a good harvest next year.

Thank you for a most charming video.

We are in a drought here in my part of the USA (Alabama) we need rain desperately and you have too much, if only you could send some our way! Hope it turns out well for you!

Good luck guys. gulfstreams gone weird and its only gonna get weirder

Yeah that's a bummer with all that rain, we in Northeastern Ontario, Canada the previous summer from early May till the middle of August, it rained every day with huge downpours!

The railway is obviously a brilliant idea and seems to be very useful, it's a great idea. In Australia, we have had years of wet weather and now we are expecting a prolonged dry period, so it seems to be the opposite of Ireland. I hope you can make it through the difficult period until the weather swings around again, as it seems to do, eventually. 👍

Sorry Tim for what you are going through but you’ve got so much good help and Sandra of course. I’m sure things will be better one little tip maybe the garlic as been growing in the same place for a long time just a thought.Suppose you will get a lot of comments.We are getting a lot of rain 🌧️ not been a great summer.GodBless to you all and helpers Tim and Sandra peace ☮️.

I hope your weather woes ease!

I would look into treating the dry room table with something like Bordeaux mix to kill any spores . That may cause future issues.

Never seen any one rail wise who didn't know how to make oak pad wheel brakes! Aa? Drying area is now inoculated and requires sanitizing the drying shed. There are a number of fungicides that are safe and work. Do not use hypochlorite solutions for anything with non-porous tools and materials.area. It will rust iron. Best of luck in the coming year!

Sounds like your next project should be a water wheel.

I've just come in from planting our garlic, albeit it's a bit late for us but only by a week or 2. Sown about 260 bulbs so not quite as many as you. We sow into no dig beds, well 'minimal disturbance' thanks to the various rhizome weeds we have, always had a good crop. Yours should be great with all that horse muck on them!

Ireland is quite windy, maybe a windmill to pump water would be an awesome project.

i wonder when we might see an automated mechanical planting machine that pushes the hole in the ground and drops a garlic bulb into it... ;-)

We had same weather in Sweden. June was somewhat OK, but the whole of July and most of August was just rain, rain and more rain... Never in my 60 years I have experiences that here ....

That is a lot of work and I just want to thank you so much for putting in that God bless you and your awesome family and I hope there's many you so much for all your hard work God bless

all farmers have my sympathies. so many things can go wrong with plants. always good to see a video from you and happy to see you getting along :D

We grew garlic some years back and were put out of business by a wet year. If I were going to do it again I would drain the area where I grew the garlic.

Great Job with mulching, but still it would take a lot of time to change the soil into well drained organic soil. Lots of sand shall be added as well and that would be very hard work. Consider please raised beds as done by Sepp Holzer from Austria. He wrote a book called "Agrar Rebel". Raised beds could work perfectly in Your conditions and with railway. Only in the beginning there is some work with a bagger to be done. Raised beds are also good for Your back.

I had the same weather in northern N H, lot my crop as well.

Well shoot... Sorry to see the issues you are having there Tim. Maybe you can get something like a portable pop up shelter to keep planting and working when it's raining but not a heavy downpour next time? If you had two you could even get some straw staged nearby and at least be able to keep something going there. Rain is a PITA when you need to get stuff done outdoors though. I have been lucky this fall with enough gaps in the rain that my roof replacement is nearly done. Have to start another section tomorrow and then I will be done with about 2000 sq ft of roof. I will still have a small section to replace but the back porch connects to that roof and sadly it wasn't built properly so the floor and roof are rotten. When I tear off the back porch and rebuild it I will be changing the roof attachment point so that it's higher up anyway so a large chunk of what is there will go away anyway. I know out where I grew up they would often dry grain out in the bins using huge fans and propane burners. Maybe you could come up with something similar for when there is a lot of extra moisture? I know someone posted about a solar collector/heater but not sure what the sun is like there and it would probably be easier to just paint your building black to help dry things out. I just got done upgrading the one I use for a little extra mostly free heat this week. Went from a 2' X 4' to a 4' X 8' collector for myself, I can push around 195 cfm of air through it and have a temp rise of around 90 to 120 degrees F in full sun. I am using toilet flanges to attach a piece of insulated flexible duct to the collector as well as an insert in a window to carry the air from inside the house to the collector and then back into the house and just have some temp sensors that tell my controller (HomeAssistant) to turn the fan on and off. When the fan is off the air is pretty well stable as from the collector's highest point where the air flows in it's a little lower to the window. But some sort of drying tunnel would probably be good for when the garlic is first harvested to get a jump start on it all.

Really good video we have had the same unusual bad weather here in New Zealand as well I love your railway

You should add a hand break to the car. a piece of Wood with a lever to rub on the wheel. That way you could stand on the car and pull it to slow it down going down hill through the narrow stretch you have.

I was wondering if it would be easier for staffs back to put the garlic bulbs in a front facing waist / harness pouch and then drop the bulbs through a piece of plumbing pipe. The end of the pipe sits in the pre made hole and they then fill the hole in using their feet. Great video as always.

I am sorry my fears for your last garlic harvest came true. Too much garlic and not enough space or dry weather to cure it. I have been considering a new experiment for my garlic next year. I am going to leave the stalks on for only a week or two and then trim it off. I theorize that with the stalk cut off, the moisture will be able to come out frome between the leaf layers on the head easier and then it won't rot. That and without all the stalk material, the airflow around the garlic will greatly improve. What do you think? 🤔🤔🤔 Mobile garlic drying racks that can go in the wood chip drying tunnel may help too! 😁👍😁

perhaps some sort of dehumidifier in the place where you dry the garlic may help, you may also need to seal that place from the outside. glad to see the railway serving it's purpose, it looks very useful. a couple ideas: perhaps some pre-fabricated lengths of track for temporary stuff like this, just having on hand, or a wagon specifically made to hold your mulch bales. you could also add brakes to some of the wagons for that section of rail, or have a specific wagon dedicated to braking with lots of weight and disk brakes from a bike or something like that. interested to see more!

Heres an idea for you Tim, have you considered adapting a lawn mower so that it runs on rails? Then you could mow your railway lol!

Sorry to hear about your garlic, but interesting to hear about the bigger picture of changing weather. Also, maybe a possibility is both the over abundance of rain in the field, and then the extra humidity in the shed from all the rain, both adding to the chance of rot. Well I'm sure you guys will figure it out, and the railway looks to work great overall :D and a fun ride!

Now the mostly car is done, you can try the bicycle hub motor and breaks for railway! Maybe they can send you another 1 or 2! Would be cool to see there motor powering a train

"interesting" times indeed, we had records too, just the other way, the (significantly) warmest year on record (dating back to 1700s). Btw, I am not a farmer (only a small garden), but if it is the white rot then this will probably not go away easily and I am afraid that you will need to use fungicide. But then again, the moisture definitely made it way worse (fungi love moisture). Thanks for the update.

sorry to hear about the troubles with the weather and the lost crops. i hope it doesnt bring you guys down

Life of a farmer, I guess. So much out of your control. I hope things work out for the best. ☮

You could try to increase the drying efficiency by using solar heat (either from a glass house, or from an external diy solar heater that heats the intake airflow) and a chimney. Since the Air inside is warmer, it can always add additional water. To drive airflow, you can use a chimney (so the temperature doesnt rise too much).

You guys are doing so well. Keep it up despite the setbacks everyone!

You should make a lawn mower car where the car holds a string trimmer in the right place and it will mow around the tracks.

Sorry to hear of your loss, but glad we seem to be back to videos I like to see.

Pleased to see your railway is prooving so useful. Well done. Sorry to hear that your garlic business is suffering from the weather.

Interesting times, indeed. Over here on the other side of the Atlantic, my malple trees are stressed from so much rain. They dropped their leaves around the first and second week in October. Normally, that doesn't happen until the third and fourth week of October. My oak trees, by contrast, are still hanging on to the last bit of green. Their leaves won't fall for another two or three weeks, which is late for them! Interesting times, indeed.

Do you measure the air humidity in the garlic storing room ? Maybe you could have air dehumidifier and air circulation fans as a backup , if it is very humid ,to avoid rot in the garlic.

I think it would be a really good idea to add brakes (lever with a wooden negative of the curvature of the wheels) to the wheelbarrow trucks! You could also add brakes to both of the trucks and have have a cable run from one truxk to the other so both can be operated from the same lever. 😁

The mold might be an effect of lack of some microelements. Consider checking the soil in a laboratory. U guess that there is not enough potassium. Wood ash is a good source of it. Onion and garlic needs a lot of potassium every year. Of course too much water doesn't help at all. Maybe some deep rooting plants could help the soil a little.

Wow, opposite problem here in Australia, the driest October here in for a long time and the driest in Western Australia on record. Sad you've lost so much to mold, may have to force dry next season with one of those you beaut Diesel heaters from Vevor. Lots of y/t on them.

Sorry to hear the bad news.😢

Meanwhile, in Spain, we are all still in short-sleeve and sandals, and no substantial rain for almost 2 years.

Thanks, Sandra and Tim 😊

Your railway was a stroke of genius. I heard someplace that garlic from China is bleached before it gets to the consumer. Why and when, don’t know.

The lady in black coat and light blue jeans is pretty cute! ♥ 🤘😍

한국에서는 마늘과 물을 이용해 접착제를 만들거나 와인, 젤리를 만듭니다. 마늘 농사를 한다면 찌거나 삶아서 한번 만들어보세요 재밌을겁니다 In Korea, garlic and water are used to make glue, wine and jelly. If you're going to do garlic farming, try steaming or boiling it I think it's interesting

Think the years of predicting the weather have had it's wheels fall off, been getting out of whack weather down here in NZ too. They say it has to do with the sea temperatures around the world being warmer putting more moisture up in the atmosphere. Anyway great video bro. Safe travels. Ken.

Maybe it's time to think about a floating train? Greetings from Poland.

Mother Nature does whatever she wants, we are just along for the ride!!

Given enough time, your railroad will be bigger than the one that I work at

We could have used some of your moisture here in Western Canada. We had one of the driest summers on record; ranchers have had to sell their livestock prematurely because they couldn't grow crops to feed them.

I know it's probably already been said but you're a little railroad project has prickly grown into a genuine railroad operation because you're using it for practical use as well as Leisure use. Which is a great thing, I wish i could do this here xD

In Mississippi USA we have had a / are having a record drought since June only a few rains. Massive numbers of trees and shrubs are dead or dying. Show by 20+ inches of rain.

I have a recommendation: Clear out the Grass around the tracks. The rails are overgrown.

Well, it looks like you should think about a water wheel. Generate electricity and use it to power a set of fans to blow air over the garlic. Moving air is doing a much better job in drying out things, even if the air is already moist.

This is so cool

Hmm, if only you had a locomotive, you know, with one big fly wheel, four small wheels, a short stumpy frame, and a short stumpy tank. It’s a shame you don’t have one to help out move the wagons!

Here in Hungary we don't plant garlic after garlic (or any other bulbous plant) for at least five years to avoid the reproduction of pests harmful for garlic. The nematodes are especially dangerous and love wet soil.

With that much rain, maybe you could look into growing rice!…

You could switch to growing rice! Does the drying shed have a fan? A big squirrel cage fan might help.

Keep your head up Tim it’ll come around. Make On my Friend

if it makes you feel any better, my supermarket has sold me rotten garlic before. The railway looks incredible, and it's being used really well!

It's so great to have some extra strenght and machines, on our property in the middle of the sierras we have some good patches of soil but there is a lot of stones, so much work, it's great if you want to workout. Thanks for sharing!

Can farmers build drainage pits on their property in Ireland? If the farming soil is too wet, maybe you could build a drainage pit adjacent to the crops. The excess water could flow into the pit instead of over saturating the farm soil.

Best thing on a saturday morning after feeding our own animals... Great job as usual.

Here in Virginia we have "Extension Agents" of Virginia Tech ( a State University) which has a big agricultural department. You can bring them farm problems like infestations, soil problems etc and they provide free advice. You might see if you can reach them online and discuss your garlic issue. So sorry Frank

Idea what you need a a miniature steam loco for your railway

Oh bugger, such a shame after all that hard work you put into growing your garlic and the work on the barn aswell. Glad to see the railway helping out, as for rainfall totally agree I think everywhere has been affected some way or another, especially Ireland and the UK. Over here in the South of England the rainfall is definitely heavier, than what it's been in the past not only that it's prolonged heavy rain aswell. We'll probably be having a heatwave in March, Apri and May where the ground will be rock hard and you won't be able to do anything.

Sorry to hear that best of luck for for carrying on

i am saddened to hear of your loss of all that garlic and the terrible weather. great to see the railway get some use nonetheless. i hope the weather gets better!

weather is crazy

I would install two fans on each end of the garlic shed to ensure airflow through the drying racks

Solar drying shed to get warm air and then blow it thru garling to prevent any mold… and what about the weather? I plan to build a solar roof green house to protect everything, from late frosts and from unstable environment in general… 😢

Hey. Should make a wheel or roller, what punches holes for garlic in the ground. Keep up good work.

You need some sort of ramp to unload

Sad to see such weather affecting your garlic, but I do enjoy your push to continue going!... I do though recommend you make a cart that well... trims the grass on the rails, until you can get more gravel and/or tarp laid out.

i love your videos