What You Should Know About Growing Leeks
Growing leeks can be a really rewarding experience. Not only do you have an excuse to play around in the dirt, but your labor will also yield a worthy “fruit”…I mean vegetable! Leeks can be included in everyday cooking, and those of us who love that mild onion-y flavor can really grasp how beneficial it can be to have your own home-grown stash of leeks on hand. Whether you already have a vegetable patch going and want to add a leek section to it, or if you’re a first-time veggie gardener and want to start out with a plant you can get a lot of use out of, there are certain things you need to know about growing leeks before you jump right into it.
The first thing to consider is whether or not you live in an area that can provide an adequate environment for growing leeks. The leek is a crop that does best during the cool seasons. You might not have a very good crop if your area often has brutal summers. Yet, nor is the leek fond of harsh winters where snow and ice are abundant.
Leeks will grow best in rich soil, which is another item to consider. How is the quality of the soil where you plan to grow your leeks? If it isn’t the greatest quality, you may have to subsidize it with nutrient-rich compost. It is also helpful to remember that leeks like a lot of sunlight, so a nice sunny patch will do your crops a world of good.
Leeks can be grown from seeds directly in the ground or grown in seed trays indoors until they have matured and are ready to be transplanted. I really recommend growing them indoors first, but the decision is totally up to you. If you plant the seeds directly into the ground, you will need to plant them about half an inch into the soil and space them about five inches apart. This should be done in the fall for a spring harvest if you live in the southern area of the United States or in the spring for a fall harvest if you live up north. As they begin to grow they will need to be kept moist which means watering on a regular basis.
If you want to grow your leeks indoors first to ensure a more stable crop, plant them in the seed trays and allow them two or three months to sprout. As they grow, you can transplant them into a small pot to remain indoors until the plant has grown to about the thickness of a pencil. By this time, it will be ready to transplant into the garden outside. Dig a six inch hole in the ground and place each transplant into its own hole. Backfill the hole with soil up to the first leaf notch. The rest of the hole can be filled with soil gradually over a few weeks. Sometime during the summer, usually about halfway through, you should make it a point to trim the top part of the stalks. This will help produce larger leeks for harvest time.
If you plant from a seedling, the crop should be ready for harvest in about 120 days. If you are transplanting your leeks, they should be ready within about 80 days from time you plant them into the ground. As a general rule, you should only harvest leeks with a stalk diameter of about one inch and no smaller. You can harvest them as you use them, but all of the crops should be removed from the ground before there is any chance of frost hitting.
Growing leeks really isn’t any more difficult than growing other crops. Other vegetables that grow well with leeks are carrots and celery, which are also pretty easy to grow. I hope you find this guide useful in growing your leeks. Best of luck!