Leeks: help me get better at it...

17 years ago

Soaked my seeds for 4 days and planted them. Of 36 seeds, 22 are about 2" tall. 2"x2"x3"/6packs times 2 per cell, in good soil. For the last 4 years, I have been planting leeks haphazardly and making do with what I reap. They are never quite large but I love the tender green part that I use in bouillons, omelettes, tougher greens in soups and the whites go into spaghetti garden sauce. I checked FAQ's -zilch- sooo could someone tell me what to do for the next few weeks- Should I separate each leek & put in a sole container(deeper?)? Right now, they are under fluo lights/11h/day and I would usually let them grow until transplant time either in a ditch or a hole. My soil is good and deep and I just cannot find good info of what to do in the meantime to keep said leeks fattening up. When you transplant, do you plant them deeper? What's this about putting brown paper around the base or add soil to blanch? You dig a hole or trench and plant them, to what depht, I am soooooo confused, HELP. Allium lover, for sure.

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Comments (3)

flodhesten
17 years ago
Hi degarden.

Until after last frost you can keep them where they are now. Just nurse them well. Plant out after last frost.

To get big fat leeks they need plenty of nutrition and water all season. This is a very important fact!

The thing about planting leeks very deep is for keeping them in the ground all winter.
For the growing season all summer and autumn just plant them deep enough to stand steady against the wind 2-3 inches deep. Growing in a trench is supposed to give longer white shafts, but it is not succesfull since that is a matter of inheritance. And for the more shallow planting talks the fact, that leeks have rather short roots, very much depending on symbiotic life with microorganisms in the soil, flourishing in the upper soil layers.

Blanching of leeks wrapping them in brown paper I suggest you try for your self, and evaluate if you find it worth the trouble (I donÂ´t). But that should not be done until say little more than one month before consumption.

Happy leekgrowing,
SÃ¶ren.
degarden
Original Author
17 years ago
Wellllll, I always wondered why my whites were never very long no matter what method I used, now I know thanks to you! That would also explain why they are never as big as store bought but the greens are way more tender and tastier. I forgot to take into account our canadian winters, where is my mind??? So I will plant them 3" deep, water and feed regularly and just enjoy them. Who saids leeks were hard to grow? Thank you SÃ¶ren
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degarden
Original Author
17 years ago
Wellllll, I always wondered why my whites were never very long no matter what method I used, now I know thanks to you! That would also explain why they are never as big as store bought but the greens are way more tender and tastier. I forgot to take into account our canadian winters, where is my mind??? So I will plant them 3" deep, water and feed regularly and just enjoy them. Who saids leeks were hard to grow? Thank you SÃ¶ren