The Finnish pastor with one of the world’s largest garlic collections—“I talk to them and play them music”

When he drew the bow to its full draw and followed the arrowhead with his eyes, his right hand began to hurt. For Torsten Sandberg, it was time to face reality: his hand could no longer handle archery.

“After I stopped that hobby, I suddenly had time for other pursuits. Back then, I had no idea what garlic could mean to someone,” Torsten says.

It all began in 2013, when Torsten purchased a few garlic cloves from the local association for useful and edible plants. At the time, he was serving as vicar in Aura, Finland and planted them in the rectory garden alongside other edible plants.

That first year, Torsten harvested only a modest bundle of garlic. He hung it to dry on the hallway coat rack and paid little attention to the white heads dangling upside down.

“But I’m the collecting type, and garlic just carried me away. Maybe there was something destined about it,” he says.

Within a couple of years, Torsten managed to collect nearly every garlic variety sold in Finland, plus those he got from Finnish enthusiasts. By then, 27 different varieties were already growing in the rectory’s garden plots.

As well as gathering varieties, Torsten also sought out key reference books, finding major inspiration in American organic farmer Ron L. Engeland Growing Great Garlic: The Definitive Guide for Organic Gardeners and Small Farmers.

“In his book, Engeland clearly and practically explains how to cultivate garlic. I learned much of what I know from him,” Torsten says.

Following Engeland’s lead, Torsten calls his approach organic farming, which he sees as very different from standard organic cultivation.

“I don’t use any industrial products or fertilizers, and I avoid using machinery whenever I can.”

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The garlic harvest was recently gathered in when we visit Torsten’s current home garden in central Southwest Finland this August. It was quite a task, with nearly 1,600 plants harvested.

Among the handsome bulbs pulled from the ground is ‘Havran,’ now resting on a rod secured to the ceiling of Torsten’s partner’s pony stable.

“I think ‘Havran’ is one of the five best garlic varieties in the world. Its flavor features layered notes of anise, eucalyptus, and heat.”

Torsten obtained this variety—and about 40 others—from a well-known Czech “ultra-organic” gardener Martin Smetana. Its first year growing was strong, but then it shrank in size. According to Torsten, that’s typical for southern varieties.

“It can take five or six years for plants to adapt to a completely new location and really flourish,” he says.

Since getting accustomed, ‘Havran’ has grown robustly. Torsten gently strokes the thick roots emerging beneath the bulb. You won’t find roots like these in a grocery store, as machine harvesting often bruises garlic bulbs.

“You can’t just yank garlic out of the ground. Imagine how it feels to be pulled up by your hair! Garlic needs careful lifting, then time to dry.”

But how do you know when it’s time to pull garlic from the ground?

“People often say to harvest when the lowest leaves turn brown, but that can mean picking them too early. A better time is when the plant still has five or six green leaves from the top down. By then, the garlic forms a thick, layered skin.”

Torsten dries his garlic in the pony stable and an unheated yard sauna for around two months. Often, they keep growing a bit at the start of this slow drying phase, and in Torsten’s experience, the flavor only deepens.

Torsten’s collection now encompasses 120 different varieties, most of which he obtained by trading with Finnish and European hobbyists. At one point, he had 150, but some were lost to the mild, wet winter of 2019–2020. Meanwhile, various new varieties have appeared under his care through mutations.

“Eight of my varieties have made their way to Europe. A Dutch gardening business took them on for further growth and propagation. I won’t say more just yet,” Torsten says.

He considers his collection Finland’s largest and suspects it might be among the biggest private garlic collections worldwide.

“I can recognize each variety by sight. I talk to them out on the plot, and play music for them when they’re drying indoors,” he says.

Torsten aims to expand his collection to around 200 varieties and hopes to spark others’ interest in the captivating world of garlic. Two years ago, he founded the Härkätien kynsilaukka—De Re Allii Sativi association with some fellow garlic enthusiasts to share knowledge about garlic and how to grow it.

“People should take more responsibility for their own food production. I believe garlic will become even more vital in the future, since it’s scientifically proven to support health,” he says.