We all know garlic wards off vampires, but did you know it also keeps away aphids, apple scab, leaf-curl and mosquitoes?

Crush a few cloves, soak in a litre of water for a couple of days and use as a spray to keep at bay ants, spiders, caterpillars and cabbage and tomato worms too.

And, did you also know, it's said to provide many health benefits I'm not qualified to list?

To put it simply, garlic's right up there with marigolds as the companion plant every garden should have.

And this month, traditionally the shortest day of the year - 21 June, is the time to plant it. If you don't get it in on the shortest day, don't worry, any time from May through till the end of July will be fine too.

Grab some Awapuni Nurseries garlic bulbs from your local supermarket, Bunnings or The Warehouse. Alternatively, head to our online store and get your garlic delivered direct to your door.

Look for a well-drained spot - pots, hanging baskets or any available space in your raised garden will suit.

If you're growing it for it's guardian capabilities, plant it next to your roses to ward off aphids, beneath apple and peach trees to prevent apple scab and leaf-curl, and next to your tomatoes to protect against red spider.

Dig in some compost, and nitrophoska blue fertiliser or use a potting mix if you're planting in baskets or pots.

Plant single cloves twice the depth of the actual clove, compost over the top and don't fill in with soil.

Then harvest on the longest day of the year - 21 December. It's as easy as that.