Growing leeks in your garden are generally easy to do, low maintenance and usually trouble-free. Leeks are also easy to save seed and grow again and preserve after harvesting! Learn how to grow leeks from seed step by step and try growing this gourmet vegetable in your garden this season.
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What are Leeks?
Leeks are a relative of the onion family with a mild oniony flavor. The stem is the part that is eaten and highly is sought after by chefs for warming and hearty soups, stocks, gratin, risotto, casserole, tarts, and tempting side dishes like scalloped potatoes with leeks and thyme.
Types of Leeks
There are 3 types of leeks
- Early Season
- Mid Season
- Late Season
Early and mid-season leeks are ready for harvest in fall and are not as frost tolerant as late-season varieties. Late-season varieties are ideal to leave in the ground over winter for continual harvests through to spring the following year.
How to Sow Leek Seeds
Leek seeds germinate at room temperature and can be started in 3 inch pots
See other seeds to start in January here.
You can start 4-5 seedlings in the 3 inch pots, if you are using the module trays, only plant 1 or 2 seeds per module. Watch how to sow leek seeds in this video:
Sowing Leek Seeds Step By Step
- Fill your pots or trays with a good quality potting soil
or a coco fiber-based potting mix
.
- Gently tamp down the soil.
- Sow seeds thinly about an inch (2 cm) apart or 2 seeds per module if using a module tray.
- Label your pots and rows!
- Cover seeds with a thin layer of potting soil.
- Gently water the pots or trays.
- Place pots or trays in s sunny spot indoors or under a grow light
.
or a 
.
.I like to use a grow light as I keep my seed starting out of the way of the dogs. Start the light close to the soil and raise as the seedlings grow.
As your seedlings grow bigger, pot them on which is where you gently separate the plants and transplant them into larger pots, toilet paper tubes or make newspaper pots
How to Transplant Leeks Outside
When your leek seedlings are 6-8 inches (15-20 cm) tall, they are ready to transplant outside. Make sure you harden off your seedlings so they get used to the weather conditions outside before planting them in their final growing spot.
Place your seedlings outside in a sheltered spot for periods of time during the day over 1-2 weeks, bringing them inside at night. A cold frame or greenhouse is ideal to help protect seedlings during the hardening off process.
Leeks need a sunny spot in the garden with loose, rich soil. Dig over your garden bed and add homemade compost to give your leek seedlings the best start in their growing position. Since leeks are part of the onion family, don’t plant them in the same space where you have grown onions or garlic the year before.
Plant out your seedlings using a dibber
Tease out the roots of your leek seedlings so they are loose and pop them into the holes. Don’t fill the holes with soil! This will help the stems swell.
Quickly water in the leek seedlings using a watering can
If it is still frosty in spring and you have hardened off your leek seedlings, plant them out under floating row cover as frost protection
Caring for Growing Leeks
Leeks are known as heavy feeders and appreciate a liquid feeding with a natural liquid feed or compost tea once every 2 weeks. You can also side-dress each leek plant with a handfull of well-rotted compost once a month.
To get nice white and tender stems, you need to hill up the soil around each leek plant by piling up soil or mulch like grass clippings around each stem. You can also wrap cardboard around each stem and tie it with twine but I find this encourages earwigs to set up a home in there and they freak my family out! So I stick with pulling soil up around the leek using a heavy-duty hoe. And the hoe pulls double duty taking care of any weeds that come up in the leek bed 🙂
Water your leeks deeply on a regular basis, especially in hot, dry weather.
If you plan on keeping leeks in the ground over winter, mulch your leeks with straw and use floating row cover as frost protection
Leek Diseases
Leeks are generally trouble-free but can develop problems with fungal diseases in areas with high humidity. Rust is common and looks like an orange or rusty colored patch on the leaves.
Onion white rot is another problem that can be made worse with over head water splashing soil which then gets onto the leaves. Mulch the soil and use drip irrigation to reduce the issue.
Because leeks are part of the onion family, they can get onion downy mildew. The tips of the leaves shrivel and fall over and pale green-yellow spots form further down the leaves. This is a common issue in high humidity or long periods of damp weather. Cut off affected parts of the plant and remove debris from the area.
Most leek diseases can be managed by ensuring plenty of space around each plant for proper air circulation whilst growing. Avoid growing leeks where you have previously grown onions or garlic.
Leek Pests
When growing leeks, keep a lookout for aphids, slugs, and snails on the plants.
If you have plants that look like they are struggling, you might have onion root maggots which can be seen when you dig up the leek. Remove affected plants from the area and avoid growing leeks in the same place as onions or garlic.
Harvesting Leeks
Leeks are ready to harvest when the stems are about an inch or more wide. Carefully dig out the leeks using a garden fork to loosen and lift the leeks. Trim the leaves and part of the roots into the compost bin and wash thoroughly before using in the kitchen.
How to Preserve Leeks
The great thing about homegrown leeks is that even if you can’t leave them in the ground over winter, they are pretty easy to preserve. Leeks can store in the refrigerator for a number of weeks and even longer in a root cellar. Leeks also freeze very well and are great to use throughout the rest of the year.
How to Save Leek Seeds
If you want to grow leeks without the worry of buying more seeds and start building your own seed back and food security, then you will need to save seeds.
Leeks won’t cross with onions or garlic but they will cross with other leek varieties grown within a mile. Like onions, leeks are biennial meaning they will send up flowers in their second year of growth. If you live in an area with very cold and hard winters, you will need to dig up your leeks and store in a root cellar or a cool, dry and dark location in your home then replant the leeks in spring to flower.
Choose leeks for seed saving that are growing well and do not show signs of pests or disease. To ensure good seed quality, save from at least 5 plants. Tie colored yarn or ribbon around leeks you will save for seed production and let family members know so they don’t accidentally pull your seed leeks up!
Bees adore the flower globes produced by leeks and the seeds are mature when the pods or capsule split open and you can see the black seeds inside.
Learn more about seed saving tools right here.
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