Permapotes
Leeks

Summer leek

Summer leek: Sowing, planting and harvest calendar

Summer leeks are early leek cultivars valued for their tender shanks and mild flavour after cooking. They belong to the same botanical group as other cultivated leeks: Allium ampeloprasum, Porrum Group, also known as Allium porrum. This member of the amaryllis family is related to onions and garlic, but does not develop a large rounded bulb comparable to an onion. Its familiar shape comes mainly from the arrangement of its leaves.

The shank, often called the white part of a leek, is a false stem made of overlapping leaf sheaths. It continues into long, flat leaves that spread out in a fan. The transition from white to green reflects the parts increasingly exposed to light. Shank length, diameter and foliage colour vary with cultivar and growing conditions. A long white section alone does not guarantee that every part of the vegetable will be equally tender.

The word summer mainly describes an early cropping and culinary profile. These cultivars develop earlier than many winter leeks, but their progress also depends on sowing time and climate. Their cold tolerance is not always equal to that of cultivars suited to remaining in a garden through winter. ‘Gros du Poitou’ is a traditional example of an early leek. Summer leeks are therefore not a separate species, and their name does not promise a crop on one universal date.

Leeks are usually grown as annual vegetables, although their biological life cycle is biennial. If development continues, a plant can produce a flowering stalk topped by a rounded head containing many small flowers. This reproductive stage also changes the centre of the shank, making it more fibrous. The leafy vegetable and the flowering plant consequently represent two different stages in the same life cycle, rather than different types of vegetable.

In the kitchen, summer leeks feature in soups, gratins, quiches, softened vegetable mixtures and slow-cooked dishes. Their onion-like flavour becomes milder with cooking and complements eggs, potatoes and fish. The white section and tender green parts offer different textures, while firmer leaves have a role in stocks. In a vegetable garden, the upright leaves provide a regular structure alongside more spreading crops. They also extend the culinary appeal of leeks beyond the winter meals with which the vegetable is often associated.

Summer leek
Summer leek
Characteristics
  • Lifecycle : Annual
  • Exposure : Full Sun
  • Frost Hardiness : Frost Resistant
  • Cultivation Difficulty : Medium
  • Mature height : 50 cm
Sowing & Planting
  • Greenhouse Growing : Not Required
  • Sowing Depth : 1 cm
  • Plant Spacing : 15 cm
  • Row Spacing : 30 cm
Maintenance
  • Maintenance : Moderate
  • Water Requirements : Moderate
Other characteristics
  • Soil Type : Humus-rich
  • Soil pH Preference : Neutral
  • Pest Sensitivity : Moderate
  • Disease Sensitivity : Moderate
  • Weed Sensitivity : Moderate
  • Pollination : Insect-pollinated
  • Propagation : Sowing