By Garry Leek: sowing, planting, growing and harvesting
Learn when to sow, plant, care for and harvest leek in your garden.
🌱 Leek : key growing facts
📅 Growing calendar
Indicative Northern Hemisphere temperate-climate calendar only. Adjust to local frost dates, climate, variety and growing conditions. In the Southern Hemisphere, seasons are approximately six months later.
🔎 Growing specifications
🧺 Harvest readiness & expected yield
When to pick
Harvest when the edible part reaches the desired size and quality. Handle carefully and store promptly using methods suited to this crop.
What to expect
Varies by variety, climate and care
Indicative only; variety, climate and care affect harvests.🌿 How to grow successfully
🤝 Companion planting
Grow beside leafy greens or carrots if spacing and watering requirements allow.
↔️ What to avoid
Avoid poorly drained soil and repeated allium planting in the same bed.
🐛 Pests and diseases
Check regularly for aphids, slugs and fungal disease.
🧤 Ongoing care
Weed carefully and reduce watering as storage bulbs mature.
🧺 Harvest and storage
Harvest bulbs at maturity, cure in a dry airy place and store only undamaged bulbs.
🧑🌾 From sowing to harvest
Prepare the soil
Remove perennial weeds and prepare a firm, well-drained bed without fresh manure.
Sow or transplant
Sow seeds or plant sets/cloves according to the crop; keep the growing point at the correct depth.
What to monitor
Check for rust, thrips and yellowing foliage; keep beds weed-free.
When and how to harvest
Harvest when the edible part reaches the desired size and quality. Handle carefully and store promptly using methods suited to this crop.