Leek is an annual or perennial plant. Leek: cultivation, care and storage

Depending on the leek variety and growing conditions, the false stem reaches from 10 to 35 cm in length and up to 10 cm in diameter. Leaves are flat, linear, appearance resemble garlic leaves, but much larger (35-70 cm long and 3-7 cm wide). Leaf color is light to dark green.

Growing leeks

This is a plant with long growing season(up to 7 months), so leeks are often grown. Leek seeds for seedlings are sown in March, since by the time of planting it should be 50-60 days old. The containers are filled with a nutrient mixture and well spilled with water on the eve of planting. Sow with dry seeds, placing rows at a distance of 4-5 cm from each other. The seeding depth is 0.7-1.2 cm. After sowing, the leek seeds are sprinkled with a dry mixture, slightly compacted and watered, then the containers are covered with glass or film and placed in a dark place. Before the emergence of seedlings, the temperature is maintained at a level of 20-25 ° C, and after their emergence, it is reduced by 3-4 days to 8-12 ° C at night.

Our advice:

Make sure that the soil during the period of seedling growth is not dry, but waterlogging should not be allowed.

Leek Care

Seedlings are planted in open ground from about May 5 to May 15, 25-30 plants per 1 m 2. In order for leek seedlings to take root better, shorten the roots by 1/4, and the leaves by 1/3 of the length. Plants are buried to the first leaf. Leeks can be sown in the summer, until July. By autumn, the plants will be able to form 4-6 leaves. Heaped with earth, they overwinter well and the next year in May-June, you can harvest.

Leek care during the growing season is the same as for all onions - weeding, loosening the soil, watering as needed. Leek responds well to top dressing. On poor soils, 1-2 feedings with mullein (1:8) can be carried out. During the growing season, 2-3 hilling of plants is carried out. In hilled plants, the false stem becomes longer and has a more delicate taste. In leeks, the growth of leaves goes until late autumn. Mature plants are frost-resistant, tolerate frosts down to -7 °C.

Leek storage

Harvest pearl leeks before frost. Plants are cleaned of damaged and dirty leaves, left for a short time in the air to dry, the roots are cut to 1 cm and a third of the length of the leaves. Leek is stored in a cellar in moist sand at a temperature of 0-2 ° C or in a refrigerator.

It is believed that the leek came from the Mediterranean, and was especially loved by the ancient Romans. Nero preferred to eat it with butter, such a mixture, according to the emperor, gave a special timbre and strength to his voice. And Mark Valery Marcione, an ancient Roman poet of the pre-Christian era, devoted epigrams of his composition to the leek, in which he praised its healing properties. Leek is widely used in cooking in America and Western Europe, but in the last decade it has confidently taken its place on our table.

Leek is a biennial plant of the Onion family, similar in appearance to, but with thicker stems, it is grown on a feather. Outwardly, the plant resembles garlic, the stem and leaves have a similar shape, but are significantly larger. And just like garlic, leeks are used everywhere in food and for treatment. The main value is the white part of the stem, which does not have a round head, but only thickens towards the bottom. The green stems can be eaten while they are young, then they become tough and practically unusable. Plants may vary slightly in appearance: for winter bow a short thick stem is characteristic, and for summer it is elongated and thin.

The white part of the leek contains up to 24% dry matter, the leaves - up to 17%. This type of onion is rich in vitamins C, B1, B2, PP, minerals (K, Ca, P) and trace elements (zinc, manganese, selenium). From 100 g of the product, our body can get 40 kcal. Leek is also convenient in storage, it is dried, frozen, canned.

For diet food this type of onion is valuable for its low (compared to onion) content of essential oils. It has almost all useful and healing properties onions, and it can be eaten by people with disorders in the digestive tract.

Biological features

Leek is cold-resistant enough to be cultivated in all regions of Russia. In the year of planting, a rosette and a false stem are formed in the form of a white or light green bulb, covered with one or two filmy scales. Its size, depending on the variety, can be from 2 to 6 cm in height and from 2 to 7 cm in diameter.

Dark green leaves have a small wax coating, reach a length of 90 cm, and a width of 3 to 6 cm. Closer to the root, the leaves close tightly into a stem, the length of which can reach up to 60 cm. The weight of one plant averages 200-300 G.

At the beginning of its development, the leek needs intense light and a long daylight hours. In southern latitudes, the plant can be left in the ground for the winter without any shelter and removed from there as needed.

The following summer, the plants form a flower arrow, at the end of which is a spherical umbrella. It can contain up to 900 small bell-shaped flowers of white or lilac color. They appear towards the end of summer, so the seeds under natural conditions rarely have time to ripen in the middle and northern latitudes, but they ripen well during storage and can produce a good onion crop for several years. On the pedicel in storage conditions low temperature, in addition to buds, air bulbs appear, which are also well suited for propagation.

Leek has a powerful root system that tolerates any manipulation well. Interestingly, the leek is the only representative of the onion that does not have a dormant period. Unlike other types of green onions, leek pleases with tasty and healthy greens until late autumn, easily enduring frosts up to 7 degrees. But if you intend to use the crop for storage, you should not delay harvesting much.

For different regions of Russia, you can use varieties that correspond to climatic conditions.

• Early ripe - Goliath, Vesta.
• Mid-early - Lancelot, Kilima.
• Mid-season - Tango, Casimir.
• Middle-late - Premier, Asgeos.
• Late-ripening - Karantansky.

Leek - cultivation and care

• Crop rotation. Soils for planting are better to choose light sandy loam or black soil. It is optimal to place the plant in the place where winter crops were harvested. Also suitable are areas where early cabbage and potatoes, cucumbers, tomatoes, and perennial grasses grew. As a precursor, leeks are very convenient because they are suitable for almost all vegetable crops. The only one he is not friends with is his closest relative, garlic. It is advisable to return the bow to its original place no earlier than after 3-4 years. When re-planting, the number of pests and diseased plants increases markedly.
• Soil cultivation. For leeks, neutral, loamy or sandy soils are preferred. Manure is applied as a fertilizer, and this can be done in the fall for plowing or even for planting a previous crop. But the norms of spending in autumn are almost twice as much. In spring, under culture per 1 sq.m. you need 2-3 kg of humus plus ammonium nitrate 15-20 g, superphosphate - 30-40 g and potassium salt 15-20 g.
• Seed preparation. The technology of dressing (disinfection) of leek seeds provides for the same actions as with cabbage seeds. Right before planting, the seeds are dipped in hot water up to 45 degrees, followed by cold water. Germinate on a cloth dipped in warm water and leave for 2-3 days. Then they are slightly dried and sown. For store-bought seeds, no pretreatment is usually required. Also, soaking and germination is not required if winter sowing of leeks is expected.
• Growing seedlings. Leek ripens late, so that in the northern latitudes of our country, the cultivation of leeks is possible only through seedlings. Seed consumption per square meter is 8-10 g. Planting leeks for seedlings is carried out in early March. The seeds germinated within 5-6 days are sown in boxes filled with soil mixture consisting of: 1 part of sand, 4 parts of sawdust, 12 parts of peat. With small volumes, you can replace the boxes with small pots in which 2-3 seeds are sown. Before germination, the optimum temperature is 22 degrees, immediately after the first sprouts appear, the pots or boxes are moved to a cooler room with a temperature of 18-20 degrees. Seedlings should be fertilized with a solution of fertilizers in the following proportions - 15 g of ammonium nitrate, the same amount of potassium, 20 g of superphosphate per 10 liters of water.

Seedlings can be planted in open ground in about 1.5-2 months, in the first half of May. Ridges with furrows 10-12 cm deep are prepared. Plants also require preparation - their leaves are cut by 25% and roots by 30%. The landing pattern may be different depending on the characteristics and size of the site.

• Sowing seeds in the ground. Leek can also be grown by direct sowing in the ground in the southern regions of the country. In this case, sowing is carried out in March-April. More exact time depends on the variety and weather conditions. Planted in rows, between which a distance of 60-70 cm is maintained. The calculation of seeds is 0.8-1 g per square meter. The sowing depth depends on the soil and ranges from 1.5 to 2.5 cm. When the plants are overgrown with one or two leaves, they are thinned out, the second time it is done when there are already 3-4 leaves. Finally, leave a distance of 10-15 cm between plants in a row.
• Care. In order to get the maximum of the white part of the stem, the plants are spudded 2-3 times during the growing season. This also achieves the best taste of the false stem. Weeding, watering and fertilizing also have a good effect on the yield. Leek responds well to a mullein solution at a ratio of 1:8 or fertilizer based on bird droppings (1:20). If only mineral fertilizers are available, nitroammofoska 20-30 g per 10 liters of water is used.
• Irrigation. In order to correctly calculate the frequency of watering and the amount of moisture needed by plants, one should proceed from the composition of the soil, the location of the site and weather conditions. In other words, it is necessary to correctly determine the water supply of the soil and the moisture content at the current moment.

If the average temperature per day does not exceed 15 degrees, watering is not performed. Water temperature for irrigation should not be below 15-18 degrees. Optimal time- morning and evening. The main methods of irrigation are drip irrigation and sprinkling.

1. Drip irrigation is the most advanced irrigation method today. Moisture is evenly distributed over all plants and goes straight to the roots. In addition, this method is convenient for high-quality plant nutrition. It allows you to accurately dose the amount of mineral fertilizers supplied to each plant. Accordingly, the growth and condition of plants are also under constant control and, at the same time, funds for fertilizers are saved. Soil pest control agents can also be added to drip irrigation water. The only drawback of this method is the arrangement of the appropriate equipment and its cost, but over time everything pays off with a good harvest.
2. Sprinkling also evenly distributes moisture among plants and makes it possible to correctly regulate watering rates. But due to the fact that the air is supersaturated with moisture, diseases spread faster with this method. In addition, during sprinkling, there is a possibility of exceeding irrigation norms, and this, in turn, causes secondary soil salinization. Over time, such soil becomes unsuitable for further use for agricultural purposes.

• Cleaning. Leek for storage can be harvested in mid-autumn, while the plants are first dug up. It is recommended to store in a dry basement at a temperature of 1 degree, lightly digging the plants into wet sand. For summer use, leeks can be dug up much earlier, in August, cleaning through the row.

“Onion is from seven ailments,” our grandmothers said, and this phrase has the most direct relation to the main character of the article. Grow and eat leeks and forget about all diseases!

Leek: the secrets of growing a healthy vegetable

Leek is a healthy and tasty vegetable that is suitable for both diet food and a luxurious dinner. It has a pleasant slightly spicy taste - leek dishes are obtained with a spicy aroma. This is a vegetable great content vitamin C, proteins, fiber and potassium salts, which helps a good metabolism in the body. And a small amount of essential oils allows people suffering from stomach diseases to use leek.

Leek is planted for the sake of a white stem - the so-called "legs". But young leaves are also eaten, especially early-ripening varieties. Various salads are prepared from them. Leek - perennial, it is unpretentious, but has its own secrets of caring for it.

Leek - an onion with flat, linear leaves, they branch off from the central stem. The color depends on the variety, growing conditions, as a rule, the leaves of the vegetable are light or dark green. Bottom part plants are a false stem - its length varies from how the leek was planted and how it was cared for. Usually the "leg" is about half a meter long, with a diameter of 3-5 cm.

For the sake of this bulbous thickening, the leek is harvested in the first year. In the next season, the vegetable is formed into a peduncle with an umbrella in the form of a ball. Onions bloom in mid-summer, and seeds are obtained in September. They are small, retain their properties for two to three years. But the formation of the plant does not end there. At the leek, sighting bulbs appear near the peduncle. They form new plants after wintering.

There are three types of onions - early, mid-ripening and late-ripening. Early varieties are harvested in August, the leaves are loose, so the bulbs do not store as well. They are best eaten as soon as possible after harvest. The mid-season group has huge, strong leaves; such a leek is harvested in October. If the winter is mild, then part of the onion can be left under the cover until spring. Late varieties grow slowly, but they are cold-resistant. Their false stem is shorter in comparison with other varieties, but thicker. Green leaves have a bluish tint, the wax coating is much more pronounced than in the first two groups of onions.

Cultivation and care

Leek has a long growing season - more than six months, so before planting it in the ground, the vegetable is grown in the form of seedlings. Working hours on open ground - the first half of May. The soil should be prepared in the fall, as onions love organic fertilizers - during this time they must give their nutrients to the soil. She must be fertile. Leek grows well after cucumbers, legumes or cruciferous.

Seedlings are planted in beds at a distance of 20-30 cm. Plants need to be deepened, so the stem of the bulbs will bleach more. When the vegetable takes root, the furrows must be covered. In order for the leek to turn out with a long bleached leg, the plant constantly has to be spudded and sprinkled with earth.

You will have to take care of the plant, albeit infrequently, but thoroughly. The vegetable will need weeding from weeds, loosening two or three times per season, regular watering and, most importantly, hilling. Feed the leek before planting and after that several times over the summer. Onions are especially susceptible to fertilizer at the time of stem formation.

Leek can be mulched. Peat, rotted small straw or tops are suitable for covering. So you can forget about weeds and watering for a while.

Plant features

Onions are quite resistant to diseases and pests. The only thing that can bother him is an onion fly or white rot. The fungus, even after picking onions, lives in the soil for several years; lime is suitable for its improvement. To avoid the invasion of the fly, the leek is planted next to the carrots.

Leek is good in combined beds. He gets along with radishes, beets, lettuce, cucumber. It is only necessary to take into account that the onion loves the sun and cannot stand the shade.

The first harvest can be harvested in August. It is then that it is better to thin out the beds. Harvested onions are best consumed at the same time, they are not subject to storage. For winter stocks, onions begin to be harvested in October. This must be done carefully, since the onion has grown deep into the ground, it is better to dig it with a pitchfork. Damaged and dirty leaves are removed, the roots and part of the upper leaves are shortened. In this form, the leek, well wrapped in cling film, retains its properties in the refrigerator for a long time. In the basement or cellar, they are placed in boxes, dug in wet sand. Keeps for about half a year. On the balcony, the vegetable can lie until the first frost arrives.

Leek is used not only fresh or stewed. It can be dried, frozen, pickled or added as a seasoning to preparations and sauces.

Leek is good both as an independent dish and as a seasoning.

This bow is versatile. It is used fresh, many are prepared from it. delicious meals, salted, marinated, dried, frozen. It acts both as an independent product, and as a seasoning and additive to vegetable preparations. The plant easily adapts to different environmental conditions: therefore, it is widely cultivated throughout the world, mainly in the temperate zone. Leek is very popular in countries Western Europe and is valued there as an important supplier of vitamin C.

"Asparagus for the Poor"

So christened the leek writer Anatole France in the story "Crainquebil" (1901). Indeed, dishes with this onion can even be tastier than with asparagus!

Leek is grown for the sake of a bleached false stem - “legs”. Plants can be eaten at any stage of development. Tender young leaves with a slightly spicy flavor are great for salads. Due to the high content of potassium (up to 250 mg / 100 g of fresh weight), leeks contribute to the activation of metabolism, and it is recommended to include it in the diet of overweight people. The low content of burning essential oils allows the use of leeks in dietary nutrition.

Grow heroes

Leeks are grown by direct sowing of seeds into the ground and through seedlings. For getting marketable products(stem diameter ≥1.5 cm) 6-7 months of vegetation is needed, so in our area it is better to grow leeks through seedlings. The sowing culture is used mainly to obtain beam greens, which are harvested from July. The sowing date (several dates) is chosen depending on the harvesting period.

Leek develops well on many types of soils, provided they are loose and highly fertile. Medium loams are best suited. When preparing the site in the fall, it is imperative to dig the soil to the depth of the arable layer.

Leek is responsive to organic fertilizers, but manure or compost is applied under the previous crop. The best predecessors are cucumbers, cabbage, legumes, early potatoes. Mineral fertilizers are applied in the spring.

Leek is very sensitive to lack of moisture in the soil. In drought, plant growth stops, after watering (at least 20 liters of water per 1 m2) it quickly resumes. Furrow irrigation is most effective.

Leek is unpretentious: care comes down to weeding, loosening the soil, hilling. Mulching of plantings with peat, chopped dry straw or tops of plants is also practiced. This helps retain moisture and inhibits weed growth. Leek plants develop slowly in the first half of the growing season, therefore, in household plots, leeks are often grown in combined plantings, alternating with rows of radishes, lettuce and other green crops, as well as beets and even cucumbers.

Recruitment to the "guard"

Onions are harvested as needed until late autumn. Plants are dug up with a shovel or pitchfork, shaken off the ground and placed in boxes in vertical position or tied in bundles. It is desirable that during these operations the false stem is not clogged with soil particles. In the collected plants, damaged and contaminated leaves are removed, the roots are cut to 1 cm in length and the leaves are cut by about one third. If necessary, the leek is washed and dried, and then packed in nets, plastic bags or plastic boxes.

Due to the high content of dry matter, leeks are an excellent object for drying. Both the false stem cut into rings and the leaves are dried. At home, this can be done in a moderately heated oven or in a ventilated area at room temperature. Leek is also canned and frozen.

On guard of our health

Leek, especially late varieties, is well stored, this is facilitated by the high content of dry matter in plants. When stored up to three months chemical composition products practically does not change due to the outflow of nutrients from the leaves. For a long time, leeks were buried in cellars in river sand, where they remained until the end of winter at a temperature close to 0 ° C and a relative humidity of about 80%. Such storage conditions make it possible to avoid the growth of roots and leaves, as well as stretching of plants.

One of better ways short-term storage of leek - in the refrigerator in a plastic film package. Before storage, the plants are sorted, cooled to storage temperature, then packed in plastic bags with perforation, 5-7 pcs. (up to 1.5 kg). The optimum storage temperature is from -2 to 2 °C, with a relative humidity of about 80%. It is desirable to maintain the temperature at a constant level. For a short time, leeks can be stored on the balcony. At temperatures down to -5 ° C, plants do not freeze, but frozen leeks are quite suitable for cooking. However, thawing and re-icing of products is best avoided.

LEEK. BOW-BATUN. ONION FRAGRANT. PERMANENT SCHNITT ONION

LEEK

Leek is rich in potassium, iron, sugars, essential oils. It has healing properties: doctors recommend it for rheumatism, obesity, urolithiasis and other diseases. One of its remarkable advantages is the ability to accumulate vitamin C during storage, this property is absent in other vegetables.
In the Non-Chernozem zone, two varieties of leek are cultivated - Karatansky early ripening and Bulgarian late ripening,
Leek is a biennial plant. In the first year, it develops green leaves and a thickened false stem or white
bark stalk, which is the main edible part of the plant. The white leg can beat 15-30 cm long and thick
3-7 cm. The next year, the leek can be left in the garden, where it throws out a flower stalk with light lilac flowers.
In the middle lane, leeks are grown in seedlings. Onions are sown on March 15-20. Seeds before sowing are soaked in hot water at a temperature of 50 ° C for 20-25 minutes, then they are well washed and soaked in a damp cloth for 5-7 days. After that, the seeds are slightly dried and sown in boxes or a greenhouse. They try not to thicken onion crops, sow seeds at a distance of 2x2.5 cm. When growing leek seedlings, you need to monitor soil moisture and air temperature. During the day, the temperature should be maintained at 18-20 ° C, at night
- 14-15 ° C. After 50-55 days, the seedlings are ready for planting. Before planting, her leaves and roots are shortened by 1/3. Seedlings are planted in a garden bed in soil well seasoned with organic fertilizers. 1 bucket of humus or compost is added per 1 m2, 2 liter jars of prepared sawdust, a half-liter jar of ash are added. From. mineral fertilizers make 2 tablespoons of nitrophoska and a teaspoon of urea. Everything is dug up well to a depth of 20-22 cm. Leek is planted in grooves 12 cm deep, well watered with a solution of potassium permanganate pink, 12 cm deep, placing row by row on
24 cm, and plants in a row by 12 cm. After planting, the onion is not watered for 3-4 days.
Plant care consists in loosening row spacings, weeding and hilling three times. During the growing season, leek should be watered regularly, about once every five days, 10 liters per 1 m2. 20 days after planting, leeks are fed. To do this, a half-liter jar of mullein and 1 teaspoon of urea, potassium sulfate and superphosphate are diluted in 10 liters of water. Dose of fertilizer solution - 3-4 liters per 1 m2 Before hilling the plants, a glass of wood ash per 1 m2 is added to them
Removed from the garden, leeks can be stored upright all winter buried in wet sand at a temperature of 0-1 ° C.

BOW-BATUN

This onion contains vitamins C, B, PP, sugar, potassium, magnesium and iron salts. Batun onion winters well, grows quickly in early spring and retains tender, juicy leaves for a long time. Cutting leaves stimulates branching in plants. Varieties: Maysky 7, Saladny 35, Gryabovsky 21.
Onions are grown on fertile soil. For 1 m2 of beds, add 1 bucket of compost, 1 tablespoon of urea, superphosphate and potassium sulfate, 1 cup of fluffy lime or chalk, or a half-liter jar of wood ash. Seeds are soaked in a damp cloth for 3-4 days before sowing. Sow early in the spring, April 15-20, then the plants have time to develop well before winter. 3 g of seeds are consumed per 1 m2. Thicker planting improves feather quality, leaves grow thinner and more delicate. Leaf cutting begins from the second year of life, from spring to autumn.
In warm, dry weather, onions are watered once every 5-6 days, 10-12 liters per 1 m2. In order to get early onion production in spring, it is necessary to close the bed with a film in mid-April. Batun is grown for greenery in one place for 3-4 years, but it is better to sow it annually in early spring, and harvest it with a root the next year in May. You can also sow in summer and before winter.

ONION

This is a perennial plant with a small false bulb and flat, narrow leaves. Is different high content carotene and ascorbic acid. Tender leaves are used, which have a slightly garlicky taste. They grow in early spring and grow until autumn without turning yellow. The yield of leaves with arrows (they are also eaten) is 2.5-3 kg per 1 m2. In one place, this onion grows 3-4 years.
In order to get fragrant onions 2 weeks earlier in the spring, they cover it with a film.

PERMANENT SCHNITT ONION

This onion is intended for cutting, has leaves rich in vitamins. The content of vitamin C in it is much higher than in onion. Chives grow back quickly after being cut. In late April - early May, it is sown directly in open ground to a depth of 2-3 cm, the soil is slightly compacted. The duration of germination is 2-3 weeks. Chives prefer sunny, rich nutrients soil, medium-heavy, humus, not waterlogged, pre-fertilized with manure. Winter-hardy.