I'm sure your timing is a bit different from mine as i'm in Oregon but I think you are a little late. I started my leeks for fall/winter harvest 2 months ago.
You might consider trying to buy some leek starts or if you really want to seed them, direct sow now to avoid losing time due to transplanting.
I'd be sure to pick a variety that can take some cold as they might not mature till after frost.

-Mark

You CAN start now, let them over winter. next year you will have some small - medium size leeks. Had you started earlier, you could have bigger leeks.

BTW, I would just direct sow in the garden.

I'm actually growing them as baby leeks for a restaurant, so I'm sure I'm not too late. My other leeks have long since been in the ground, but these will be the first leeks I've ever started this time of year, where direct sowing was even an option. I just don't know if there are reasons why direct sowing might not work now- too hot to germinate, pest pressure, things like that. I know at least one other person here has mentioined starting leeks midsummer. Cheers!

My grandparents grew onions commercially, and always direct seeded. Leek is an onion and the seed looks identical. If the soil temp is too high it will affect germination. I would suggest shade cloth for a cover.

I have tried direct sowing leeks in Maryland in summer. They did come up, but never got going and just sort of dessicated and disappeared. It could be it was at a busy time when they were not babied enough with shade and water. I did only try it once, a couple of years ago.

A week ago I direct sowed another batch with a shade cover, but we are going away for a week, so that batch may be toast too!

Let us know how you make out. Baby leeks, with lots of babying,,,, sounds good!

Hepatica

Well, I guess I'll give it a try with direct sowing. Shade cover will definitely be a part of it! I like leeks, baby or not, which is funny since for the longest time I thought I didn't. My Mom always made them into a certain dish that I didn't care for, but it turns out it was the method of cooking I didn't like, not the leeks.

Finally an update about summer sown leeks here in Maryland:

About a dozen survived and they are at least 1/2" diameter. Nothing special, but this year my spring-sown leeks did not get much bigger than that. (Usually I get 1:diameter leeks by early fall.). I am inclined to try the summer sowing again next year and hope for a better year for leeks.

This was a GREAT year for tomatoes though!

Every year has a different set of successes. We eat lots of what grows well, and savor the relatively rare ones. They are different each year, giving a sort of yearly novelty in the menu!

Finally an update about summer sown leeks here in Maryland:

About a dozen survived and they are at least 1/2" diameter. Nothing special, but this year my spring-sown leeks did not get much bigger than that. (Usually I get 1:diameter leeks by early fall.). I am inclined to try the summer sowing again next year and hope for a better year for leeks.

This was a GREAT year for tomatoes though!

Every year has a different set of successes. We eat lots of what grows well, and savor the relatively rare ones. They are different each year, giving a sort of yearly novelty in the menu!

Leeks , in my experience, have to get over one year old , if you want THICK stems. They will overwinter fine just like garlic. That is why they are so much more expensive, using space and time for a long time.

I'm glad the Maryland leeks made it. Summer sowing doesn't give them much time. Next time you might want to try a fast variety like King Richard.

About the 1 year thing. Not in any way to disrespect or doubt anyones experience, but I thought i'd offer my thoughts. I have about 3000 leeks in the ground around 6 months old (seeded early April). This is the second week harvesting for market and many of them are easily 2+ inch diameter. They're grown organically and fed only compost and water. Varieties are: Belton, Lexton, Kenton and Ashton....(Obviously all inbred by those crazy English breeders)

Here's a photo of one of 2 beds, next to the cabbage. I don't have a better photo handy, but can try to remember to take one.
{{gwi:76243}}

Here is the tub of leeks harvested today, I think there's about 30 lbs. The flash messes up the photo, but you can get the idea.
{{gwi:76244}}

Mark,
How do you get so much white and still keep your leeks so clean?

It was funny to see a post I started resurface, but glad it did. My spring leeks performed well, we got plenty of baby leeks for the restaurant as planned. My summer-started seeds failed due to sudden hot, dry death (aka me being to busy to remember to water them on one crucial day). There were still many left over spring leeks standing in the field, though so I just let them grow. Long story short, not a success. Multiple problems from moles tunnelling beneath to voles eating the below-ground portion to multiple infestations of onion maggot. That last one is the doozy, not sure what to do about them, they've been here since I started and it seems not to matter how much I clear the residues they keep coming back. Well, shorter-lived alliums may be the answer, alas.

Care to share your secrets, madroneb? Those leeks are incredible! I'm in OR, also, and am harvesting some leeks that I started in July (not near as much white on mine, but respectable).

Did you direct seed in April? I'm in the Portland area, and was wondering if I could direct seed that early too (everything I saw suggested planting in mid-summer).

Sorry to hijack the thread, hope the OP doesn't mind.

I seed in flats in early April and transplant out into a nursery bed the middle of June. The leeks are planted tight in the bed, about 1" apart. The grow this way for another month, then I dig them and put them as deep as possible in the permanent bed. Usually the leeks are about 1 ft tall, and I plant them 6-8 inches deep.
The spacing is 4 rows in a 36" bed, spaced 6" apart.

That's the secret for what it's worth. It's a lot of extra work, but I personally like the results. If I was to hill the leeks, I couldn't plant them this densely. As space is a premium at my place, I think it pays off.

-Mark

"I don't have a better photo ..... " Don't worry, I think we get the picture ...... and are green with jealousy.

Mark, how could I possibly mind when you are giving away your leek secrets? :) That sounds a lot like what I once read they do in France, and that method should give leeks that not only long and white, but also without dirt between the leaves/layers so less cleaning is needed in the kitchen. Do you find that to be the case?

They are definitely easier to clean than if I had hilled them.

Just to be clear, I look back at the picture and though the whites are high on the leek, the flash makes it seem more than it is. I'll try to get some better pictures soon.
-Mark

I grow Bleu de Solaise leeks, a late, enormous leek. I start them in mid Feb in a deep pot, set the pot outside as long as the temp is above freezing (bringing them in at night) and set them in the garden some time in April when I'm sure night time temps won't get too cold. (If you have too many very cold nights, the leeks think they've been through a mediterranean winter and they bolt).

When I set them out, I set them deep, but no deeper than the lowest leaf. As they grow I pack hay around them--hay keeps them clean. Now, as I harvest, they have very long and very thick white portions that have no dirt in them at all.

Sorry, no pictures. I'm a good gardener, but I'm technologically challenged.