Onions grow on top of the ground and bulb enlargement takes place at the air to soil boundary. Leeks are typically planted in trenches about 8 inches below the ground. Leeks do not form a bulb but...
the shaft of the leeks enlarge equally as they grow. It doesn't really matter at what size you harvest the leeks, they don't seem to get tough when they get bigger.
We put a generous amount of organic fertilizer in the bottom of the trench and then put compost on top of the fertilizer. We plant into the compost in a double row. The compost keeps the weeds from growing for the first month and at about 4 weeks we till the leeks and roll the soil into the trench. This kills the first flush of weeds. A second tilling in about 3 weeks brings the soil up to ground level. The final tilling hills the leeks. At this point the leeks are buried about 8-10 inches deep and the shaft of the leeks are blanched white.
We like to plant a variety with a very long shank for more useable leek.
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