Garlic is one that took me a while to fathom and I'm still not sure I've got the process. It seems you plant the clove in autumn and it sprouts, then dies back for winter. Then when it comes back in spring it will start to expand and separate into cloves. It takes almost a year to be ready for harvest as a complete bulb (so summertime). You can, of course, eat it at any stage, so what you pulled up can be eaten still. Just prep it greens and all.