Diavolicchio
Contemplation Leave
I try to grow a good-sized patch of garlic every year, almost exclusively the hardneck types that send up scapes, or flower stalks. One other attribute that's distinct about hardneck types is that each clove needs to be planted by hand, which is one of the main reasons the majority of large commercial garlic plantings are softneck varieties; softnecks will grow fine, regardless of how the clove is dropped into the ground.
Because planting handneck types is more labor intensive, I created a 'bed marker' that would mark the location of each clove to be planted, so no additional time had to be spent trying to plant uniform rows. To do this, I bought a "lawn roller," like the kind you might see smoothing out a golf course, had the sides of the drum removed (since I wouldn't be filling it with water) and had a machinist weld metal cones onto the outside of the drum, spaced exactly as far apart as I wanted each garlic plant (6" x 8" grid.) I lucked out, because the circumference of the metal drum was a multiple of 8".
Once I form my garlic beds with a bed maker attached to the back of the tractor, I simply push this device right down the center of the bed and everything is perfectly marked for planting.
It takes about 5 minutes to mark a 360' bed (which will hold 2,160 plants.)
Because planting handneck types is more labor intensive, I created a 'bed marker' that would mark the location of each clove to be planted, so no additional time had to be spent trying to plant uniform rows. To do this, I bought a "lawn roller," like the kind you might see smoothing out a golf course, had the sides of the drum removed (since I wouldn't be filling it with water) and had a machinist weld metal cones onto the outside of the drum, spaced exactly as far apart as I wanted each garlic plant (6" x 8" grid.) I lucked out, because the circumference of the metal drum was a multiple of 8".
Once I form my garlic beds with a bed maker attached to the back of the tractor, I simply push this device right down the center of the bed and everything is perfectly marked for planting.
It takes about 5 minutes to mark a 360' bed (which will hold 2,160 plants.)
Now, that's a lot of garlic!!! Excellent ingenuity, Diavolicchio! 
I also enjoyed very much reading about your fruit trees. When I was about 8 years old, I helped my father plant 40 apple trees in what became the family orchard. 20 Yellow Delicious and 20 Red Delicious semi-dwarf trees. We sure did spend a lot of time together out there trimming and spraying and picking. My favorite memories are taking a trailer LOADED with apples down to the neighbors cider press and coming home with 80 or 90 gallons of fresh cider! YUM!!! We used to freeze some of it so we could enjoy it during the winter and the spring months.
