If you planted early in the season, you may see some leeks starting to produce buds now after the heatwave we had the other week. If so, you might want to harvest a few of the others before they go the same way.
As a general rule, leeks can be left in the ground over autumn and winter until you’re ready to eat them. However, if they are threatening to flower, think again….once a leek bolts, the inner flesh becomes very tough and virtually inedible. We have found before that we couldn’t even slice a bolted leek with a sharp knife, as the woody bit in the centre really was too hard.
If you have been unlucky and your leeks have bolted, (you’ll see a bud starting to form as pictured) harvest them as soon as possible, along with any other more mature leeks in your plot. When it comes to using them in the kitchen, we’d recommend slicing them down the middle lengthways and removing the middle woody bit (you can happily throw it on your compost pile). Then you can just use the outer bits which will be much more tender and perfectly fine, especially if you’re cooking them up for soup.
You could also decide to leave them to flower and seed… if they are in a small raised bed, or dedicated patch, you may find you have a very good crop of leeks to enjoy next year!
