Thanks for the link to that article, Sandy. Lots of good information. I also used to plant too close together, so I force myself to go at least 6" apart. When you have really limited planting space, it's tempting to try to squeeze as much in as you can, but sometimes that just doesn't pay off. Last year was the first year I did my garlic in raised beds, and planted with more space between each clove. It really did seem to pay off, in terms of the size of the heads we were harvesting.
I've found that many of the skins stay on the cloves, even when soaking. They may loosen somewhat, but very few actually come off.
And I agree with the article--the soaking process with the seaweed does smell bad
