Topic: Sowing leeks!

[buddy12]

Hi this is probably a really stupid question but i am a complete beginner so you will have to forgive me!! I want to grow some leeks but i dont know what to sow them in e.g do i put them in a tray then move them to a deeper pot when they get bigger or do do they go straight to a pot (how deep?) or am i stupid and they should go straight into the ground ??? HELP God help my new allotment! this could be a fun year of learing!!

Thanks

[Debs]

Hi buddy12,

I sow mine in a seed tray, transplant to 3" pots then into ground when

they look as thick as a pencil.

To plant, dig a hole and place leek in, water it in by filling hole with

water as the roots are delicate. Fill in with soil and earth up a little

to help 'whiten' the stem.

Others will have different methods.

Debs

[MikeB]

Hi Buddy12,

I've tried the folowing two methods, neither appears better or worse than the other.

Sowed seeds thinly in a couple of seed trays in march in the greenhouse (coldframe/polytunnel etc.).
When they were as thick as a pencil (approximately in June) transplanted outside to their final postion as described by debs.

Sowed seed outside in march in a bit of spare ground approx' 2' x 2' transplanted them in June to their final position.  I tend to plant them where my first/second earlies (potatoes) have just been dug up.

[digswell]

I have alternated between the two methods, and have not seem much difference, that said I now tend to transplant mine slightly smaller than a pencils thickness, and just use a cane to make a hole and water them, as they grow I tend to ridge them up in much teh same way as spuds ensuring teh tops are clear of the earth. I have found this helps keep the weeds down a bit as well.
 ;D

[Curryandchips]

An icecream size carton is my favourite, being slightly deeper than a normal seedtray, so the roots have more room. When about 6 inches high they will be planted out into dibbed holes and watered in. I grow enough leeks this way to satisfy all of our requirements.

[katynewbie]

Sown about 30 in a pot, they are now poking their heads up above the compost, how damp/dry should I keep them? Have a habit of killing seeds with kindness and water, simple instructions would help!!

 ;D

[sandersj89]

I sow mine in 20cm pots, leave them there until it is time to plant them out.

No need to pot on as they are fairly tough.

I do not sow any until late march at the earliest.

HTH

Jerry

[Dadnlad]

Sow in short row in seedbed (cloched) end March-mid April ish, then transplant 6'' ish apart once early tatters are out.
As you can tell, my gardening philosophy is very 'ish'   ::)  ;D ;D ;D

[peterpiper]

i sow mine in a seven inch pot leave them in it until the ground my first early pots  have been in is cleared then plant them into that area. it works for me.
peterpiper

[Garden Manager]

I am growing leeks for the first time this year so am taking an interest in this topic ;D. I do though know a little about growing them.

I have one comment to make on the planting out. I was given to understand that you dont backfill the planting hole with soil but let watering settle the roots and wash down soil around the plants gradualy. This I understand produces better blanching. (Source: Monty Don on Gardeners World).

[powerspade]

I sow my Leeks late March outside in a short row than after I lift my early spuds I transplant them in the space provided

[Robert_Brenchley]

When planting out leeks, I just dib a hole, drop one in, and fill the hole with water. There's no need to do any more than that.

[vee]

I've followed sandersj's instructions on a previous post to the letter, but there wasn't any time of year given, so I sowed them a couple of weeks ago. Now I've read this thread it seems I have done them too soon. They're all coming up beautifully, but they are going to be too early I expect.
Never grown leeks before so it's all an adventure!

[Robert_Brenchley]

Don't worry, they're extremely tough. They should be OK now they've germinated. The danger is that seed planted too early can rot. I won't be planting for at least a month at this rate..

[vee]

That's a relief!
I look at them every day and they seem to be doing ok. They're in an unheated conservatory and look happy enough. I am planning to move them to a cold frame and then later plant them out when pencil sized.
When is the best time to do these moves?

[Ricado]

isnt it true the more depth of leek in the ground, the larger the usefull white section for cooking?

last year i sowed in trays, and transplanted as deep as i dare, but still thought on harvest they could have gone a little deeper.

the other way would be to sow outdoors, and leave until they are fairly well advanced and can be buried deeper.

Most plants can be buried a lot further than you would think.  Tomatoes can be buried as much as you like, they will simply grow new roots from the ground level point.

I would presume you can bury leeks right up to the "V" point, which only occur when the plant gets larger.

[Garden Manager]

I suppose the timing of sowing depends a little on where you plan to plant them and space available on the plot. For instance if space is tight and you plan to use the ground where the early potatoes are growing then perhaps it is best to delay sowing  a little so that the leeks are at the right stage when the spuds are lifted. On the other hand if space is not an issue and you want an earlier crop then sow as early as possible and get them in the ground and growing ASAP.

I was going to do the latter myself, but then discovered how slow growing leeks can be and that they can follow early potatoes, so will be delaying my sowing so that i can do this. It also means i can give my potatoes more room this year as space will not be so tight.

[supersprout]

isnt it true the more depth of leek in the ground, the larger the usefull white section for cooking?

My mum always used to earth up leeks as they grew. They were planted in a trench and the trench was gradually filled in, like celery. Now I use beds, I suppose I could use mulch to earth up, but leaving them alone produces enough edible leek, plus I get the benefit of lots of green leafy stuff for the compost heap. And it would be tricky to mulch where I'm using leeks to clear the ground, thru black plastic (see below). So I won't be earthing up in future.
Different varieties also have longer or shorter 'white bits', so fat stumpy ones it is from now on  ;D

[redimp]

As has been posted elsewhere, I make a hole as deep as I can - on my plot probably a spits depth max.  Then I earth up by simply popping a toilet roll tube over the leek - no grit risk.

[Mothy]

Last year (my 1st) I sowed in march in seed trays then some more in May. Planted out 1st in early June and 2nd lot mid august. !st lot all eaten now despite having rust. 2nd batch although somewhat smaller, are lovely, green and tasty!!
Variety was Musselburgh.