Talkback: How to grow leeks from seed

My guess that is to stop birds pulling the leeks out of the ground until they are rooted??-so not long-have to admit have never heard of this before

I always grow mine in modules and wait until they are a few inches tall before dibbing a deep hole and popping them in (watering only, not filling in with earth

Mike - I start mine off in the greenhouse (unheated) in trays and pot on until a suitable time for planting out  - mine don't get fleeced. Are you sowing yours direct?

I built a new raised bed in my vegetable garden last year. What to plant as a first effort towards end of summer?? Amongst other thiings planted out some small leek plants bought in Garden Centre and also sowed some leek seeds. Latter are still too small to eat, but former have nearly all been eaten!! Good for succession but best return clearly from small plants. Delicious.

No. I find that fleece can sometimes be a problem in frosty conditions whch is somewhat ironic. What happens is that the fleece gets wet with rain or condensation and in frosty conditions this freezes. If the fleece is in contact with the plant real damage can result.It is not always possible to keep the fleece up off the pants. Leeks are really hardy anyway.