The early leeks, Pandora, have been ready to harvest since the start of October. The leeks are lifted as and when required. The vegetable gardener is always tempted to leave them to grow into a bigger specimen, but if you do not start to lift them when they are small, the last ones to be lifted are too big, and have lost their flavour. Leeks have a better & stronger flavour when they are small.

The leeks were transplanted on July 6th. This early variety, Pandora, matures quickly, and were ready 90 days after transplanting.

Pandora is a productive, late summer to early autumn leek, with a good tolerance of Leek Rust. The leeks have long, pure white, quality stems with dark green upright foliage.

The leeks are lifted by placing a fork under the roots. The roots hold on tightly and the stem easily snaps off, if a fork is not used to loosen the roots.

In the vegetable garden, leeks can be lifted gently and carefully to avoid getting soil in between the leaves. It is difficult on sandy soils to avoid contamination with soil, and no-one likes the gritty texture of sand in cooked leeks. To avoid this, the leeks can be placed upside down in a bucket of water. The sand will then drop out.

The different leek varieties give a spread of harvest. Pandora are a long season variety, so will stay in the ground for a few months, but they are getting larger and will soon loose their flavour. The Musselburg leeks are a mid-season variety and are ready to eat now.

Leeks are a reliable vegetable and will stay in the ground throughout the winter, producing vegetables for the kitchen until April.

Click on the image of this book to find out more about Growing your own Vegetables.