Latest Prices of Leek Seeds and a Detailed Guide to Growing Them

Leek is also known as everlasting leek, lazy man's vegetable, grass stalactite, etc. It is a perennial herbaceous plant of the genus Allium in the Amaryllidaceae family. The vegetable has strong adaptability, is cold-resistant and heat-tolerant, and is widely cultivated throughout the country. Its leaves, flower stalks and flowers are all eaten as vegetables, while the seeds and other parts are used in medicine to tonify the kidney, strengthen the stomach, refresh the mind, stop sweating and astringe, and so on. Now let us take a look at the price of leek seeds and how to grow them!

How much does a jin of leek seeds cost?

The price of leek seeds is about 80 to 150 yuan per jin, varying with the quality, variety, place of origin and market of the seeds. Leek has very strong adaptability, is both cold-resistant and heat-tolerant, and is cultivated everywhere in our country. In many areas of the south it can be produced all year round. In the north, although the aboveground part dies in winter and the underground part enters dormancy, it will continue to sprout and grow after the surface soil thaws in spring. In production, seed propagation and division propagation are mostly used.

Sowing methods for leek

1. Land preparation and fertilization: Before sowing, the leek seedling bed should be deeply plowed and the clods sun-dried, then made into flat beds. For each square meter, spread 5 to 7 kg of decomposed chicken or pig manure or 8 kg of humic acid ecological fertilizer, 0.1 kg of urea, 0.05 kg of abamectin soil nematode control agent, and 0.02 kg of 50% carbendazim wettable powder.

2. Seed treatment: First sun-dry the leek seeds for 1 to 2 days, then put them into warm water at 40°C and stir. Take them out, rub them clean, then change to warm water at 30°C and soak the seeds for 8 to 10 hours. Place them under conditions of 18 to 20°C to promote germination, rinsing with clean water twice a day. When 60% of the radicles have emerged, sowing can begin.

3. Sowing time: In the Huang-Huai River basin, spring sowing of leek is usually from early April to mid-April; in the south, from December to February; in the north, from May to June. Sowing can be done when the ground temperature is stable above 12°C and the daily average temperature is 15 to 18°C.

4. Sowing method: When sowing leek seeds, drill sowing is used. Each mu of seedling bed uses 6 to 8 kg of dry seeds, which can plant 6000 square meters of vegetable plot. Immediately after sowing, cover with plastic film to preserve and raise temperature, and remove the film when 70% of the seedlings have pushed through the soil.

Growing methods for leek

1. Seedling stage management: After the leek has emerged uniformly and until the seedlings are 16 cm tall, water once every 7 to 10 days according to soil moisture. Along with watering, apply 50 kg per mu of decomposed human excrement and urine or humic acid ecological fertilizer, and at the same time manually pull weeds 2 to 3 times.

2. Site selection and land preparation: For leek cultivation, choose a plot with fertile soil and convenient drainage and irrigation. Apply 4 to 5 cubic meters of decomposed farmyard manure per mu, level the land and make beds. The beds are 2 to 3 m wide, with every 3 beds as one group, and a 1 m wide cold-protection belt is set on the north side.

3. Timely planting: Leek is transplanted from late June to early July. Before planting, cut off the tips of the fibrous roots, sort them into small bundles with the bulbs aligned, and plant them in holes on flat beds. When planting, it is best not to bury the leaf sheaths. After planting, firm the soil and water.

4. Field management: After new leaves emerge, leek should be watered to help the seedlings recover and cultivated to conserve soil moisture, keeping the soil alternately dry and moist. After autumn begins, fertilizer and water should be supplied fully. As the temperature gradually drops afterward, the plants grow slowly, and it is enough to keep the surface soil from drying out.

5. Timely harvesting: The standard for cutting leek is 7 leaves and 1 heart. Harvesting in the early morning is best, and it is appropriate to cut down to the yellow leaf sheath 3 to 4 cm above the bulb. Each subsequent cut should be slightly higher than the previous one to ensure normal growth.

Pest and disease control for leek

1. Leek maggot

[Damage] In spring and autumn it mainly harms the young stems of leek and causes rot, making the leek leaves wither and die. In summer the larvae move downward and bore into the bulbs; in severe cases the bulbs rot and the whole clump of leek dies.

[Control] During the adult stage, spray 2000-times diluted 2.5% deltamethrin emulsifiable concentrate per mu. During the larval stage, use 500 ml of 2% methyl abamectin emulsifiable concentrate per mu diluted to 1000 times for drenching.

2. Gray mold

[Damage] In the early stage of gray mold, white or grayish-brown spots appear on the leaves, then expand into prismatic or elliptical lesions. After they merge with one another, they form large dead patches that cause the leaves to wither and die.

[Control] Using 600-times diluted 78% Kebo has a good effect. Increase the application of organic fertilizer, harvest appropriately, drain promptly after rain, reduce field humidity, and promptly remove old leaves and diseased seedlings.

3. Phytophthora blight

[Damage] It harms roots, stems and leaves, especially the false stem and bulb, which suffer the most. On the leaves, the damage appears as dark water-soaked lesions, after which the leaves turn yellow and soft-rot. When the stem and root are damaged, they show brown soft rot.

[Control] Spray 1000-times diluted 50% Huihaiwei or 2000-times diluted 40% dimethachlon for control. After each harvest of leek, spray the chemicals evenly.