Growing Leeks In Your Organic Garden
by John Yazo
Leeks is an easy crop to grow in the home garden and is a great vegetable for areas that have cooler climates. It is the sweetest and most delicate flavored of the onion family.
The prefered soil conditions for this crop is one with a healthy organic structure, a soil that retains moisture, drains well and retains nutrients for the plant to benefit from. Keeping your gardens soil supplied with the organic matter needed to allow the organisms that exist in it naturally to thrive is the best method of keeping the soil healthy.Let nature do it work naturally and provide you with the benefits it can provide your crops.
Leeks can be planted from seed or transplants, if you plan on starting from seed, it is best to start indoors two to three months before the last expected frost in your area. Start your seeds in flats or peat pots and keep in an area with sunlight and a day time temperature of 65 - 70 degrees Fahrenheit, night temperature of 55 to 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Once the seedlings are about 3 inches tall you can thin them to 1 inch apart and when they get to around 5 inches tall thin then to 2 inches apart. When the seedlings get to a height of about 8 inches they are ready to be transplanted into there permanent location outdoors, but before they go out they will need to be hardened off.
When transplanting your seedlings, plant then about 6 to 8 inches apart, in holes about 6 inches deep and in rows one and a half foot apart. The tips of the plants should be a couple inches above the grounds surface when planted.. If you want long thin stems then you can plant them closer together. When planting, place the soil back around the seedling loosely and water.
Keep the soil moist , don't let it dry out. Feed your crop with a compost or manure tea once a month throughout the entire growing season and your crop will grow strong and healthy.
Once your plants are pencil in size, hill around the plants and build the soil up two to three inches around the stem. This is known as "blanching", it blocks the sunlight and elongates the edible stem. This will improve the flavor and looks, along with making the crop more tender.
Leeks has anywhere from a seventy to one hundred day before it matures, there flavor is at it's best just after a light frost. In areas where the temperature stays above ten degrees Fahrenheit, harvesting leeks can be done throughout the entire winter months. In cold climates the entire crop will needed to be pulled out before extreme cold weather.
If you would like to comment on this website or have any suggestions please feel free to contact us
