Pencil thin leeks

[Dianne1234567]

My leeks which have been in all summer (or since spring) are still only the thickness of pencils - will they grow any or is it too late, and how long can I leave them?

[zazen999]

Leeks can take about a year until they are ready, so leave them be. They usually stay in the ground all winter.

[rustylady]

Where are they planted? Leeks are hardy and can be left in the ground until you want to use them, and may put on a bit more growth if the weather is kind.

[bobleponge]

I only have a very few that survived the mass murder perpetrated by their guardian during the last moon trials, but they arent much bigger than a pencil right now.
Mine will be staying until they are either big enough or they just rot down into nothing, to see how they go.

[Dianne1234567]

They are in my back garden plot, and I will leave them to overwinter.

[HayleyB]

I actually hoed one of mine the other day totally disgusted with meself

[toastie]

Our leeks this time last year were pencil thin (think mainly as it was our first year on the allotment and our timing was out). However transplanted them and overwintered them. One of our allotment neighbours (who had been doing it for years) told us in February this year that we'd be better pulling them up as they didn't seem to have grown very much. How wrong could he be - they got a growth spurt on and we pulled them up in April/May this year and they were absolutely lovely. Actually some of them are still in the freezer and we plan to make leek and potato soup with them. Morale of the story - don't despair - just let them do their thing.

[butter fingers]

my leeks are ranging in size from pencil to almost mature size. i like them this way. so i can go from an alternative to a spring onion and upwards. i never let my leeks fully mature as i prefere them nice and tender.
sometimes i think i should just grow leeks as i cant seem to go wrong growing them.

[zazen999]

I sow them regularly all year round - even more so this year as I swapped some and gave some to Mo.....but my first sowing [which I forgot about until a few days back] had grown lovely and I harvested it tonight - a good inch and a half wide. Autumn Mammoth.

It tasted marvelous

I'm off to the lottie in a bit, and going to transplant some more. I love my leeks

[solway cropper]

I'm with zazen and butterfingers on this...if i could only grow one veg it would be leeks. We use thin ones in salads and stir-fries and fatter ones in soups, stews and as a steamed veg. Next year I'll put in another row of maincrop after the first tatties and another few thickly sown tubs. The best thing is that you just put them in and they grow and the longer you leave them the bigger they grow...brilliant.

[gojiberry]

Were your leeks transplanted Diane and if so how far apart are they. They should be full size by now if they have been in all summer. My first transplants were done mid June and they are now full size. There has to be a reason why they aren't growing all you need to do is find out why and then rectify it. If they are only pencil thin I would dig them up trim the roots and top and transplant into a different part of the plot.

Ian

[Twinsane]

I've lost mine... I dotted them around the flower borders in the garden but have been busy elsewhere the last month or so and the rain and warmth have encouraged a weed explosion. I can't weed it until next year in case I pull them up! (That's my excuse for not weeding and I'm sticking to it!)

[Two_Sheds]

The trouble with leeks ... mine are always gritty
I've tried slicing and soaking, rinsing and rinsing, but they are always gritty when you eat them.

I have to tell Mr Sheds they are onions now, or he won't eat them.

[zazen999]

I've got a new leek technique......i used to use a dibber and make a hole, drop the leek in and water in.

Now, I make a hole with a bulb planter, drop the leek in [much deeper than the dibber method, as the clay is really solid at the moment], and crumble the soil back in the hole. With the longer leeks, I have double bulbed, to get more depth.

I'll report back; the main issue of course for me is getting the rotters out again; particularly in the wet winter. Sometimes I slice the end off if they grow slightly out of kilter.

[Incy]

The trouble with leeks ... mine are always gritty
I've tried slicing and soaking, rinsing and rinsing, but they are always gritty when you eat them.

I have to tell Mr Sheds they are onions now, or he won't eat them.

Love it TS. I wouldn't get away with that as my OH does the cooking

I'm hoping he will leave my leeks alone this year though as last year he thought I'd forgotten them so pulled the lot up and cooked them way before they were ready!