[shaun]

just a little thing about leeks,why when you are transplanting them you cut the root ball and half of the top growth ?
i'm sure there is a simple reason

[Oliver]

cut the root ball and half of the top growth

Some people believe this encourages them to get a move on and re-establish themselves.

[John]

I think this was an old practice that has now been shown to be ineffective.
I just drop them in the hole and water well.
Why not try half one way and half the other then let us know if there's any benefit?

[GrannieAnnie]

One of my books says that if you trim the top off when you plant them, the worms won't think that any bits that bend over and touch the ground are dead and try to pull them into the ground!!!  But I have tried trimming them this year to see how different they are to last year's which I just let grow.

[shaun]

to late john there in i should of thought of that .
another thing i learnt this morning was when planting them.was to look at the top growth and it grows from left to right,so plant them all pointing down the row.this way you dont snap the leaves when walking past them.

[VictorLaslo]

I planted leeks for the first time this year (i'm a novice to all this) i just poked a hole in the, freshly dug, soil using a dibber, dropped them in and watered them.

Do I just watch them grow now, and when will they be ready to eat?

VL

[Oliver]

Do I just watch them grow now, and when will they be ready to eat?L

Yes.
Raymond Blanc, the famous chef at Le Manoir aux Quat' Saisons in Oxfordshire serves leeks when they are 'pencil thin'.
Pull them up carefully, wash, trim the tops a little, steam or boil lightly, serve with butter. Yum.

She grows lots of leeks about 3in apart. She harvests every other one when they are very slender (about as thick as her index finger) and serves them as a braised vegetable. The others grow away happily and get harvested as the spirit moves her. Some grow on and get harvested in the winter when they are 'normal' leek size. (About 1in in diameter).

[GrannieAnnie]

I try to leave mine in for the winter, but they don't always reach that far into the year!!  I love them just sliced and sweated in a little butter, black pepper and their own juices.  Yummy

[mellowmick]

I've had mine in for 3 months (grown from seed and planted out at about 3") and I've been losing them one by one either to predators (right term for rabbits & pigeons?), or with them just yellowing and dying off. Still got about a dozen left, and they look green and healthy but they're tiny; biggest isn't 6" yet. Almost like they've stopped growing, or they're growning REALLY slowly. Any tips :?:   :?