Spring planting doesn’t start when the air feels warm, It...Read More
Large American Flag Leek is a large, upright, non-bulbous type of leek. This heirloom variety matures to have long & thick, white stalks topped with 1 ½ inch wide, grey-green, flat leaves. This variety is tolerant of cold weather and are biannual, but they are typically grown as annuals; warmer climates may have luck over wintering leeks to grow as a biannual than those with a significantly cold winter.
The white stalks of Large American Flag Leeks are edible and taste of a subtle mild yet sweet onion flavor. They are great boiled, fried, baked, or steamed, and their flavor can complement a large range of dishes. Unique & crunchy, try using American Flag Leeks in salad, soup or stews, meat pies and stir fries, or simply use in place of sweet onions in most recipes. Although this vegetable is not as well-known as its close relative the onion, chefs and gardeners alike will appreciate the Large American Flag Leek for its sweeter, more subtle flavor. This seed can also be used to grow microgreens.
NAME: Leek (Allium porrum)
VARIETY: American Flag
DAYS TO MATURITY: 120 – 130 days
POLLINATION: Open Pollinated
TYPE: Biannual, typically grown as annual
HARDINESS ZONE: Zones 3 – 10
SUNLIGHT: Full Sun
SOIL: Fertile, loose soil with a soil pH 6.0 – 6.8
PLANT HEIGHT: 15 – 18 inches
SPACING: 3 – 6 inches apart
TEMP: 40 – 85 °F
These seeds do not required stratification.
To learn more about Stratification, click here!
Start sowing 1 month before your last spring frost. Sow 1 to 2 seeds per cell, 1/2 inch deep, in plug cell trays using a seed starting mix; larger cells are recommended.
Keep the soil moist, but not saturated. Maintain indoor temperatures at 60 to 70°F. Germination occurs in 14 to 21 days.
Thin seedlings to 1 seedling per cell when they reach 3 inches tall.
Supply a fluorescent/LED plant grow light 3 inches above the tops of the leek seedlings.
You may need to transplant the leeks to larger pots if they start to get too large for your cell trays.
Begin to transplant the leeks in late spring, when seedlings grow to be 7 inches tall and are as thick as a pencil.
Transplant outdoors into very fertile, loose, loam soil using the “dibble method” by using a broom stick or similar to push holes into the soil for the transplants; make sure the holes are deep enough to leave 2 to 3 inches of the tops exposed you want to bury most of the plant, so it forms very strong, thick stalks.
Space transplants 6 inches apart, in rows that are spaced 24 inches apart
Direct sow seeds outdoors once air and soil temps stay above 50°F during the day and night (Minor temperature fluctuations are okay).
Sow seeds 2 inches apart and cover with ¼ inch of fine soil; press soil down lightly and water them in generously; seedlings emerge in 12 to 18 days (Warmer soil temps germinate the seeds quicker).
When seedlings are 4 inches tall, thin to 6 inches apart; this will allow enough space for each plant to grow.
During the growing period hill the plants with soil 2 or 3 times; hilling is the process of pushing dirt up around the plant to promote top growth and increase quality of bottom growth forcing the leaves to grow higher up on the plant, resulting in extra-long blanched stalk stems and a much greater edible portion.
When the “dibble method” is used during transplanting, hilling is reduced or eliminated.
Apply compost 2 times throughout the season around the leeks to boost fertility which will give you a large plant that yields a desirable leek.
If mulched well, leeks will produce well into the winter.
Harvest leeks when the bases of the stalks reach 1 to 3 inches in diameter.
Sever the roots under the stalks and twist the stalks back and forth to loosen and pull them out of the ground; cut off remaining roots and all but 2 inches of the leaves.
