Greenly Garden
Get the app
EN

When to plant garlic in Thunder Bay: 23 September – 30 October

In Thunder Bay, garlic: plant from 23 September to about 30 October.

Garlic is best planted early in the window: cloves planted late make smaller bulbs. Late planting works only while the soil is not frozen. Mulch after planting.

The date is about two weeks before the average daily temperature here falls below 0 °C (ten years of weather): an estimate, not the day the ground freezes, and a cold spell can freeze it earlier. Sources: UVM Extension, UNH Extension, RHS, how the ground freezes (NRC Canada, CBD-26).

Garlic in Thunder Bay: soil, season and weather

Garlic goes into the ground in Thunder Bay from 23 September to about 30 October; the window opens a month before the first autumn frost. Nights then average below 0 °C in November–April; the coldest, February, averages -15.4 °C.

Planting23 September – 30 October
First autumn frost23 October
Coldest nightsFebruary, -15.4 °C
Soil back at 5 °C in spring7 May
Harvest (card)about 8 months after planting: May
Daylight12:11 on 23 September
Daylight at the winter solstice8:19

The same dates in Thunder Bay hold for Tulip, Daffodil, Crocus and Hyacinth.

Garlic in Thunder Bay: care after planting

Planted on 23 September: in the first weeks water every 7 days.

Feeding, by the card’s schedule from that day:

  • 23 September — feed: nitrogen
  • 21 October — feed: nitrogen

Pests and diseases of garlic to watch for:

Dates count from the first planting day of the window above; a later planting moves them by as many days.

Garlic in nearby cities

Around Thunder Bay, Grand Forks is 7 days earlier and Traverse City 17 days later.

CityDistanceDateDifference
Duluth279 km28 September – 10 November5 days later
Green Bay439 km30 September – 17 November7 days later
Minneapolis487 km24 September – 10 November1 day later
Traverse City488 km10 October – 26 November17 days later
Grand Forks584 km16 September – 31 October7 days earlier
Fargo589 km16 September – 4 November7 days earlier

Where to buy garlic for planting in Thunder Bay

Planting stock goes into the ground from 23 September to about 30 October; buy it before that. Within 15 km of Thunder Bay OpenStreetMap lists 2 garden centres and 1 market (collected 20 October 2026).

Places: © OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL.

Questions

When to plant garlic in Thunder Bay?

In Thunder Bay, garlic: plant from 23 September to about 30 October. Garlic is best planted early in the window: cloves planted late make smaller bulbs. Late planting works only while the soil is not frozen. Mulch after planting.

When is the last spring frost in Thunder Bay?

Last spring frost around 11 May, first autumn frost around 23 October.

Other crops in Thunder Bay, with their dates