Posted: 19/02/2015 at 13:43
I know about the supermarket chains being nasty and wanting to boycott gardeners when it comes to that, but it's three cloves in a pot and they'll stay in that pot. When I popped them in there I thought: "Supermarket...I wouldn't put it past them if these are modified and could contaminate the soil if planted out"....
It's nothing to do with anything like that! It's just that garlic which has been sold for growing are grown in virus-free soil and are guaranteed to be virus-free. Garlic bulbs bought for cooking with may have picked up a virus from the soil/air/insects at some time while it was growing. The viruses that alliums can carry aren't harmful if you eat them, it's just that the plant will not make such good growth and will yield poorly. It's just the same reason that it's recommended to use bought 'seed' potatoes from virus free stock rather than planting left-over cooking potatoes which may carry a virus.
Another reason why it's recommended to plant garlic bought especially for growing on is because the varieties in the garden centres etc will be suitable for growing in the UK climate - those bought in the supermarkets for cooking with are likely to have been grown in a mediterranean climate and will not perform well in our climate which is on the northern edge of their range.
The suggestion that supermarkets, and by implication the farmers who supply them with vegetables, would intentionally contaminate them is ludicrous! What do you think they feed to their own families