Hi Dave,

I've grown leeks most years (also in central NJ - Sayreville) and always started them from seed outdoors in early April. I plant them very shallow and cover lightly with some fine mulch such as dried grass clippings or hay for the first week or so, just to make sure they do not dry out. Once germinated I pull the mulch back a bit since they look delicate, like onions. I thin them to about 2" apart in the row when about 3" tall.

While I have always had decent leeks (1"+ stems in late Sept through Oct), I don't know if my method is optimal. I know you can start seeds indoors to get a jump on the season but I have not done so. I believe I also read that their culture is more like garlic than onions and can be planted outdoors in Oct/Nov, but I'm not too sure about that. In any case it's too late for either option at this point. I would just plant the seeds outdoors during the next week if I were you.

BTW, my garlic (230 plants) that I put out in mid November have a 100% stand and are about 6" above the mulch. I'll put out an equal quantity of onions (plants from Dixondale) today. Cold crop seedlings are doing well under lights, and peppers/eggplants/herb seeds are just beginning the germinate. I'll sow my tomato seeds indoors later this week.

TomNJ

Oops, my mistake. I was thinking of *shallots* which have a culture similar to garlic, i.e. Fall planting - leeks are like onions and are a Spring crop in the north.
Just start your seeds outdoors now in NJ and you should be fine. Next year you can start indoors in Jan/Feb like onions if you want a jump on the growing season.

TomNJ