SCIENTIFIC NAME: Allium porrum
MICRO-FARMING GUIDE
TRANSPLANTS: 400seeds/open tray
INTENSIVE SPACING: 3 rows 25cm apart, spaced every 15cm, thin dibble to 20cm, don’t backfill
PREFERRED CULTIVARS: Varna; King Richard (summer), Megaton (autumn)
FERTILISATION: Heavy feeder
DAYS IN THE FIELD: 75 to 130 days after transplanting
NUMBER OF SEEDINGS: 1 transplanted in early November
CULTURE: A large, upright, nonbulbing type of Allium. Matures to long, thick, blanched shanks topped with 50-75mm wide flat leaves. Leeks are heavy feeders and require fertile soil (pH of 6.2-6.8) for best results.
GROWING SEEDLINGS: Sow in flats in Aug-Sept, 6mm apart, 6mm deep. Transplant to 75mm plug flats when large enough to hanule, or start in plug flats, thinning to one plant per cell.
TRANSPLANTING: Beginning in late spring, when approx. 20cm tall and pencil-thick, transplant outdoors 15cm apart, rows 60cm apart in holes dibbled about 15cm deep. Only 25-50mm of leaves need extend above the soil surface. Do not firm soil – allow irrigation or rain to fill in the dibble hole.
DIRECT SEEDING: Sow in early spring, 6 seeds/30cm, 6-12mm deep, in rows 60cm apart. Thin to15cm.
BLANCHING: During the growing period hill the plants with soil 2 or 3 times, higher with each hoeing. This forces the leaves higher up the plant resulting in extra long blanched stalks and a much greater edible portion. When using the “dibble method,” hilling is reduced or eliminated.
HARVEST: When plants reach desired size, loosen with a spading fork and lift plant.
STORAGE: Clean leeks and store several weeks at near freezing in a humid cooler in boxes, or store in a root cellar with roots in moist soil/sand/peat mix.
DAYS TO MATURITY: From transplanting; add 20-30 days if direct seeding.
AVG. DIRECT SEEDING RATE: 1,000 seeds/55m, 30g/550m, 300g or 105,000/acre at 6 seeds30cm in rows 75cm apart.
TRANSPLANTS: Avg. 30g/6,000 plants, 500g./100,000.
SEED SPECS: Seeds/30g: 7,700-10,700 (avg. 9,400).
Quick Facts
- Latin Name: Allium porrum
- Days To Maturity: 75 Days
- Life Cycle: Annual
