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Garlic is generally planted in the fall, and it uses that winter time to concentrate on root development and cloves formation/separation. In the warmth of following spring & early summer it will grow leaves and more mass to its bulb.
If you plant them now, they will immediately start leaves and bulbing... so it can't grow as big or as well- not giving you the result you may expect. Or, it might. If you're up for an experiment- and don't mind the effort that might give unexpected results- no harm in trying!
If you already have the bulbs, plant them ASAP! Otherwise, maybe wait until fall to purchase garlic 'seed' bulbs (so they are fresh from this year's "seed garlic" stock) and plant between Halloween and Thanksgiving in the U.S.
Then harvest by around mid-summer.
This article may help...
https://ohioline.osu.edu/facts...
Ohio state university extension said:
Garlic can be planted late in the fall, after other tasks are finished. The cloves will produce roots and minimal shoot growth before going dormant late in the season. Growth resumes in the spring and the bulbs develop, called bulbing, in mid-summer. Fall planted garlic plants are more mature and will form a larger bulb while spring plantings of cloves will result in smaller heads of garlic.
