Winter
It’s not entirely too late to put your garlic into the ground if you ran out of time in autumn. Late season varieties like Standard Purple Stripe will probably do best, and aim to get them in as early as possible. Use the guide I shared in Autumn for tips on what to do, and how to know when your cloves are ready to plant.
In the last month of winter, for us that is August, you can plant a second crop of garlic to grow ‘rounds’ or super single cloves, which you can plant out again to grow into multi-cloved bulbs in Autumn (or just eat!).
Watch the leaf colour
By mid to late winter, your garlic plants should have four to six leaves on them and are looking lush and green. Any discolouration of the leaves (red/purple/yellow) suggests a nutrient deficiency that will result in the leaf dying, leaving the plant with reduced nutrient uptake/conversion. Take heart, it may easily be fixed with a trace element correction if you act quickly before it impacts greatly on the plant.
Whilst this time of year is too cold for major growth, there is still some action because of the weather (if the plants were under snow it would be a different ballgame). If you can, act now to ensure the plant is ready to thrive once the warm weather starts and growth takes off. Strong healthy plants are better placed to fight off disease and pest attack.
How to add nutrients
If you think you need to add nutrients, start gently. I don't recommend dousing the plants in nitrogen rich products that take a scattergun approach to fix a nutrient problem. Whilst you may fix the nutrient deficiency, you may create further issues because it is a broad-spectrum product (for example, nitrogen bloat).
I use a specific organic product called Nutri-Key Shuttle 7 by Nutri-Tech Solutions that helps address any deficiencies in the plant. I recommend applying this by foliar-spraying, rather than a watering can.