Leeks

[svalli]

This is the first year that I had real success with leeks. I have tried multiple times with my own seedlings or purchased plants from the nursery. This year I purchased a small crowded tub of plants, which looked like a grass tussock. I planted most of them in the field on a bed covered with black plastic the same way as I do other Alliums and some I planted in a small pallet collar raised bed in my city garden.

The field ones were harvested already in end of October, since we do not get there so often in November and December and it it is also colder area with ground freezing earlier than in the city. My leeks have never grown so large. Some had formed a flower stalk and first I was disappointed, but when I started using them, I found out that the flower stalks taste mild and sweet and have nice crisp texture.

leeks from field.jpg

We have already had snow on the ground, but weekend was rainy and the snow melted. Yesterday afternoon after work I decided to go out and dig the leeks, because forecast has freezing temperatures and more snow this week. Our days are so short that at 4 pm I had to put a headlamp on to dig the leeks. These did not grow as well as in the field, but I am still satisfied.

leeks in city garden.jpg

leeks harvested in december.jpg

My new dehydrator will arrive today, so some of these may get dehydrated, for longer storage.

Sari

[pepperhead212]

Those look great, [mention]svalli[/mention]! What variety is it, and when did you plant them?

[bower]

Awesome! I agree that leek scapes are delicious and very tender.

[svalli]

Those look great, @svalli! What variety is it, and when did you plant them?

I do not know the variety name, since the plant tag says only that those are winter leeks. https://www.80821.dk/billeder/80821/00000090
Same Danish nursery, which grew these has also summer leeks and the difference mentioned on their website is that the summer ones have to be harvested before frost. The information states that the winter leeks could be harvested as late as following March, but our winters are a bit colder than in Denmark, so I decided to harvest now when the ground is not frozen solid.

If I remember correctly, I planted these in end of May.

[GoDawgs]

Those are beautiful! I too have not had much luck with leeks but I'd still like to try them. I don't think I've ever planted them in the fall. Summer would probably be too hot here.

Did you plant them in a trench and back fill over time or just plant them deeply at the beginning and let them go?

Edited to add: I just looked back in my records and saw that the last time I tried leeks was in the fall of 2015l. Seed was started in August and plants set out in December. That's strange. I think I'll try them again this coming year and start the seed a lot earlier for September planting like I do with onions and scallions.

[Paquebot]

Svali, your leeks would have survived winter but leaves would mostly be killed. That would leave the stalk portion to use early in the spring. If left to begin growing again, they will bolt. There are over 40 varieties available to SSE members. I now only grow Inegol which is a tall Turkish variety. That one is equally prized for the leaves as well as the stalks. This year's crop has been harvested. The leaves were timmed and pureed in a blender and froze in plastic containers. The stalks are stored in a large Rubbermaid container in the ground. They are packed in dry maple leaves for fresh use all winter.

Martin

[HenriSportif]

Sari, those are lovely!

[ponyexpress]

Did you plant them in a trench and back fill over time or just plant them deeply at the beginning and let them go?

I had a nice harvest of leeks this year. I put them in a trench and backfilled over the season. Has a nice long streak that was blanched. The variety I planted was Gevaria. Will be doing Lancelot for 2021.

[svalli]

Did you plant them in a trench and back fill over time or just plant them deeply at the beginning and let them go?

I had a nice harvest of leeks this year. I put them in a trench and backfilled over the season. Has a nice long streak that was blanched. The variety I planted was Gevaria. Will be doing Lancelot for 2021.

I did not back fill the ones grown in the field, but the ones in the city were mulched once after they started to grow. I like the green leaves with stronger taste, so I do not try to maximize the length of the blanched part.

Svali, your leeks would have survived winter but leaves would mostly be killed. That would leave the stalk portion to use early in the spring. If left to begin growing again, they will bolt.

One year I left small leeks in my raised bed and let them grow flowers following summer in hopes of collecting seeds and getting the corms in the roots. I did not get viable seeds and the two corms, which I found did not sprout for me, but it was an interesting experiment.

Sari

[bower]

This year I gathered up the small perennial leeks (persisting for 5 yrs or so) that were scattered among perennials on the shady side of the garden, and moved them to a sunny spot where I'm hoping they will set seed a bit earlier. The down side is they are more exposed to freeze and thaw in the sunny area, and are certainly getting lots of that already this season. Still they're looking pretty good (cheerful green among the rest of brown things!) so I hope they don't mind that and settle in their new place. If the experiment fails, I will try again and make them a patch better isolated from the other perennials on the shady/snowy side of the garden again.

[Amateurinawe]

I did the same with one of my leeks this year. Each year my alliums flower and seed and I bring them in, they make a lovely flower arrangement and then they shed their seeds all over the place in The house .....The leek produced a lovely bloom and I have cut it off but sadly no seed

[Paquebot]

Leeks rely mainly on insects for pollination. For best viability, 3 to 5 plants should be saved. I maintained one variety for a number of years by leaving several to do whatever they wished. The seed heads were allowed to self-sow in the fall and I would select seedlings from the many which came up in the spring.

Martin

[Tormahto]

Leeks will likely be a part of my garden this year. I've had a pack of Delft Perpetual sitting around for two years. I hope it will still germinate. Not worried about huge size (quantity makes up for that), I sow seeds outdoors in mid spring. My previous leeks have had a pair of side shoots on many plants, that will grow the next year. I have no idea how many side shoots Delft Perpetual produces.

[Amateurinawe]

[mention]Tormato[/mention] I have grown quite a few leeks before although had trouble seeding them. The great thing is they do actually freeze quite well. My onions were good too and having dried them and chopped them they go into the freezer too .