Leek is a relatively new crop in Russian gardens. In Western Europe, this onion has been grown for a long time, it is a must-have ingredient in most traditional dishes. Leek has an interesting taste, gives a pleasant bitterness, and most importantly, this onion contains a very large amount of vitamin C and other microelements necessary for the body.
There is nothing difficult in growing leeks, but in order for the crop to be stored for a long time, you need to know some rules for harvesting this crop.
Features of leeks
To correctly calculate the time when you need to harvest leeks, you need to understand the peculiarities and nuances of this culture.
So:
- Leek is unpretentious, it can easily grow in almost any climatic zone, withstanding drought, and humidity, and temperature extremes. Only sub-zero temperatures are fatal for onions, so the leek crop should be harvested for the winter.
- Leeks are considered to be a very fruitful crop. If we compare it with the onion, which is more familiar to Russians, then the leek definitely wins in terms of yield: two to three times more mature plants are harvested from the same area.
- The most valuable part of the leek is the white head and neck. It is in the lower part of the onion that the largest amount of vitamins and minerals is contained.
- Leeks can be eaten in different ways: they are eaten raw, salted, pickled, dried and used as a seasoning, added to soups and side dishes. Leek is delicious and nutritious.
- Leeks are a two-year crop, so growing them in one season from seeds will not work. The most effective ways to cultivate leeks are planting seedlings or sowing seeds before winter.
You can pick the green feathers of leeks at any stage of culture development - the leaves have a piquant taste and give a slight bitterness to salads and hot dishes. If the gardener plans to keep the harvest until next spring, you need to take care of the correct harvest and provide the onions with suitable storage conditions.
When to harvest leeks
The first thing that the owner of a leek plot must learn is that the ripening time of this culture largely depends on the variety. Today there are many varieties of leeks, among them there are both early ripening and "evergreen" varieties grown "on a feather". There are also varieties of leek, the feathers of which remain soft and juicy throughout the growing season, other varieties of onions are grown precisely because of the value of the heads.
Leek harvest time also directly depends on how soon it will be used. For example, if you need fresh greens, you can cut the feathers during the summer and throughout the fall. Those who want to stock up on delicious onions for the winter should take care of a place to store them.
Usually, leeks are cut for the winter in early October, but here a lot depends on the climatic characteristics of the region.
Basically, the longer the onion stays in the beds, the better - all nutrients will be preserved in it for a long time. In regions with mild winters, sometimes leeks are left in the garden until the beginning of spring, only in this case the plants need to be well covered - so the onion can withstand frosts up to 8-10 degrees.
Colder winters force gardeners to dig leeks from their beds. After that, the question arises about the storage of this valuable vegetable. Harvest the onion like this:
- carefully dig the heads out of the ground, trying not to damage the delicate feathers;
- remove yellow, dry and damaged leaves;
- onion feathers are trimmed by two-thirds;
- the roots are shortened by about half;
- washed onions under running water;
- dry thoroughly in a well-ventilated room.
How to store leeks
There is no single rule for storing leeks, the method may depend on the purpose of the vegetable:
- Even in the summer, you can make blanks for the green part of the leek. To do this, cut off the grown feathers and cut them into rings or strips. Chopped onions are put in bags and sent to the freezer. Such blanks can be used for preparing salads and other dishes.
- Leek can be finely chopped and dried in the oven or in an electric dryer, setting the temperature to no more than 50 degrees. In such conditions, almost all the nutritional properties of onions will be preserved. This seasoning can be used alone or mixed with other herbs.
- To keep whole leeks fresh for a long time, you need to choose the most beautiful and strong leaves. They are thoroughly washed, dried, then put in bags of no more than eight pieces. The bags need to be placed in a cold place (temperature from -2 to +2 degrees) for several hours, then make several holes in the polyethylene and put the onions in the freezer. The storage temperature of leeks should be no higher than -5 degrees, then the vegetable will retain its taste and appearance for about 5-6 months.
- You can store leeks in the basement for about six months, but special conditions need to be created for this. The air temperature should not rise above 10 degrees, and the humidity is about 85%. Store the leek in wooden boxes with wet sand. The dug stems with heads are placed vertically, immersing the lower part in the sand, then sprinkle the feathers with moistened river sand - the layer should be at least 20 cm.In this state, the leek will perfectly preserve all vitamins and will be as fresh as from the garden.
Each owner himself chooses a way to store his harvest, but in any case, you need to know some of the features of leeks:
- do not immediately put onions in the freezer - before that, the feathers must be cooled. If you do not follow this rule, the leaves will not retain their freshness, after defrosting they will be soft and lethargic.
- You can also store leeks on the balcony, but you need to cover it well. In such conditions, the vegetable will withstand frosts down to -8 degrees.
- The condition of the onion stored in any way should be checked periodically. Damaged or rotten stems must be removed.
- To dry leeks, you can use heating up to 100 degrees, but valuable vitamins will be preserved only when such processing is short-term - no more than 20 minutes.
- If you miss the moment and do not dig up the leek before the first frost, you can lose most of the harvest. Frozen feathers will not be stored.
- You need to dry the leek on gauze or cotton cloth. In no case should the sun's rays fall on the unfolded bow.
Leeks are a very unpretentious crop; it is quite easy to grow them. It is also easy to preserve the harvest of this useful vegetable, you just need to be able to properly collect it and prepare it for long-term storage.
