how many leeks do you plant per square?

I thought I'd try putting some leek seeds in this fall for spring harvesting.
But I don't know how many to plant per square.

Can someone help please?

Thanks
Gloria

OH I SO wish I could be saying this! Alas I will have to start them in February inside the house.

Look at the seed packet.

If it says to thin to 12 inches = 1 per square
Thin to 6" = 4 per square
Thin to 4" = 9 per square
Thin to 3" = 16 per square

Hope this helps,
Kim

Well, onions are 9 so they wouldn't be less than that and I would venture more. So my guess would be 16. However read your packet and use the following guide:

1 per square foot: plants that are thinned or planted 12 inches apart.
4 per square foot: plants that are thinned or planted 6-8 inches apart.
9 per square foot: plants that are thinned or planted 4 inches apart.
16 per square foot: plants that are thinned or planted 3 inches apart.

Thanks Chopper and ksroman,

I read the package and it says "thin to 6" apart" so I'll try two squares of 4 per square.
I'll see how that goes.

Thanks,
Gloria

I plant closer together, then start pulling alternate ones as soon as they are big enough to start using. I will use down to about fat, kindergarten pencil size, ~ 1/2" (1 cm for most of the rest of the world) and bigger. By the time the leftovers are big, they are far enough apart to suit the "normal" spacing recommendations. Since leeks don't have a super extensive root system (especially when young), you can pull them pretty easily from MM without disturbing the rest. If you miss any of the "tweeners", you'll have to pull them together when they get big (and you end with 2 slightly smaller leeks if they're too close together).

Odd Duck wrote:I plant closer together, then start pulling alternate ones as soon as they are big enough to start using. I will use down to about fat, kindergarten pencil size, ~ 1/2" (1 cm for most of the rest of the world) and bigger. By the time the leftovers are big, they are far enough apart to suit the "normal" spacing recommendations. Since leeks don't have a super extensive root system (especially when young), you can pull them pretty easily from MM without disturbing the rest. If you miss any of the "tweeners", you'll have to pull them together when they get big (and you end with 2 slightly smaller leeks if they're too close together).

+1 This is how I seed and manage a lot of the stuff I plant including beets, lettuces, spinach & chard.

Old Duck,

Does that mean you'd plant 9 and pull the center ones? Or would you go even closer?

Thanks
Gloria

First time a planted leeks by seed, I went 4" apart and got very few plants by the time I was done and it took FOREVER! The next time I planted leeks, I planted by slips and put them about 2" apart and I haven't bought leeks since then. I just pull out the biggest ones, replant any little ones that are growing around the big ones about 2" apart, then repeat (like washing your hair ). If you eat a lot of leeks, you better buy quite a few to start with, but if you go easy on them the first few years, you can produce your own slips this way.

Old Duck,

That's a wonderful way to handle it. I'm starting seed inside - so I'll plant them 16 per square (a little less than you did) and pull the ones out in between. I'll also keep re-planting the tiny ones if there are any.

I like trying new things, and since it's my first year gardening, I haven't done any squares that I've thinned that way yet. I'm excited to see what happens.

The reason I'm planting my leeks now is that - I'm trying an experiment - This bed will have my leeks, garlic, beets, spinach and lettuce. Once the weather gets a little cooler, I'm going to cover it with double-walled poly that has a zipper in it for access and see if I can keep the bed productive all winter long. I'll use black milk jugs for added warmth and add a blanket if it gets really cold at night. If we have a hard winter like last year - it probably won't survive, but if we have a mild one, perhaps I can have produce in December and January.

Thanks so much for your help.
Gloria

You should be able to get all that through easily with a cover. The leeks and garlic don't even need covered at all. The carrots and beets should also weather through just fine. The leafy greens will frost, so need to be covered for a heavy frost, a freeze, or heavy snow. I had lettuce, carrots, broccoli, raab and chard from my cold frames all winter and had onions and garlic anytime I wanted (but had to actually dig it out once rather than just pull it since the surface had frozen a bit).

Odd Duck - that's SUPER!!!!!

Leeks are smaller than onions...so you could go at least with onions, and maybe more.

Ferry-Morse says to thin to 4"

mel says one leek per 1 square foot.
in his article in OG in feb 1996 p28.

Having looked at a half-dozen seed sites across the internet (both Europe and the US) -- it varies pretty widely depending on variety.

I think the seed packet holds as the overruling authority if in doubt.