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Allium porrum 'Monstrous Carentan'
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Description
Hardy and vigorous. Size: 8 X 1 inch. Large thick stems with blue-green foliage for cropping late October to early January. A relative to the onion, leeks are attractive as well as delicious. Try leaving a few unharvested to enjoy the lovely flowering heads that are just like allium bulbs!
Leek is easy to grow, cold tolerant. It is slow growing so to get an early crop, seed should be started indoors. When 4-5 in tall, transplant to a trench 6 in deep and 6in across. Gradually fill trench as plants grow, surrounding stems with soil. This blanches the stem providing better flavor. Does best in a sunny location with deep, well drained, loam soil (ph 6.0-6.8). They do not grow on soils with a pH below 6.0. Leek needs even moisture throughout the growing season and a lack of moisture will give a lesser quality leek.