Kitchen Garden Forum

A plot holder near me has recently pulled most of his leeks, which looked fine, only to find they were all mushy and rotting around soil level.

I've looked through the archives and don't think it's, leek moth, I certainly hope not but a not sure at all as most of the information is about what the pests look like rather than the damage caused.

My leeks are fine as are Seedlings who is on the next plot to the affected plants.

Suggestions anyone?

Dear Chantal, i was wondering, as i do, whether it could be something as simple as the variety they were growing, not being one of the hardiest varieties. And with this snowy Winter, they might have just rotted naturally.

I'm with OH. I had this happen once and what a horrible slimy mess they turn into. I think they were called Winter White. I now grow Blue Solaise and they are no problem, dug some today, and a great flavour.

I agree with all the above: I grew King Richard (early) and Musselburgh (late, very hardy) last year and when I pulled up the last remaining King Richard recently, they were certainly no longer edible, all soft and rotten at the bottom whereas the Musselburgh have survived the winter very well.

Brilliant, thanks! A huge relief for me and for Seedling.

I'll pass on the message.

Thats what we are here for Chantal.

I've just pulled up the last of my leeks (Musselburgh) and found that one or two of mine were mushy. I blame it on an combination overdose of rain and snow with several days of freezing temperatures causing ice crystals to re retained in the body of the plants for several days. I wouldn't normally blame too much rain on its own because at the end of several reasons I've dug up surplus leeks so I can dig the ground and stored them with just their roots in water in buckets and they have kept perfectly well like. I suspect its the frost and ice which has done the damage.

This is the information that I have on my website about these pests:-
Some Leeks in the South of the UK are now being infected with two new pests.

Yellow green caterpillars of the Leek Moth can appear in May and June and again in August to September. The latter attack is likely to cause most damage when the caterpillars eat into the leaves and shafts of Leeks. The caterpillars eventually pupate in net cocoons to continue the cycle. The affected Leeks are likely to rot.

Larvae of a new pest, the Allium Leaf Miner, are now found in the West Midlands. Eggs hatch out in March and April and again in October and November, leading to cream coloured larvae which burrow into the stem of the Leek.

As these pests cannot be attacked with pesticides, you can only control them by using barrier methods, such as using a mesh.

My guess would still be on damage by frost and wet. Here in Glasgow, there are regular problems with frost and wet damage on some varieties of so-called Winter hardy leeks. Some that are claimed to be Winter hardy have failed the test here. My favorite hardy leek is still Musselburgh, though Giant Winter hardy also did well for me this year.
King Richard, one of my favorites, is only an Autumn leek and really should be eaten before Christmas.

I can't help with Chantal's question, however my small row of leeks were looking very poorly last Autumn - grey and ragged. However over the very cold winter we had, they seemed to recover and are now fine and healthy. Maybe the cold killed off whatever was affecting them?

If you give your leeks a couple of autumn feeds with a high potash fertiliser( any tomato feed will do) this will make them hardier and more resistant to rust and less likely to rot.

I'm in the West Midlands and can confirm the Allium Leaf Miner is rife here unfortunately! Has it not spread to other areas then? I've had my leeks (but not onions, shallots, or garlic very fortunately) infested with this pest over the last couple of years, and it has decimated my leeks that were still standing mid to late winter. I'm sowing earlier varieties this year to try to harvest before the pest strikes, hope I'm lucky!
AdetheSpade

Dear AdeTheSpade, it's not in Bedfordshire yet, as far as i'm aware.

If it is the allium leaf miner, it's visible though quite small - small brownish/red creature, wingless, usually hidden in between the layers of the leek. Last year I squashed all those I found and managed to salvage some of the leeks by stripping the outer, damaged layers and retrieving the inner part of the leek. Got a much smaller harvest but at least it was better than none!

I have lost all my leeks for the last 2 years and I'm pretty certain it was leek moth. The leeks go mushy as described but if you look closely you'll see tiny holes where the caterpillar has gone in. I'm told (on this forum) the best thing is to use a barrier such as enviromesh over the leek plot

Found a creamy coloured grub on my leeks today and another looks "poorly" Every year the whole site suffers though some plants recover,it's always been put down to leek moth but this thread has got me thinking Someone on site said they'd heard spraying with a diluted vinegar solution had an effect? Anyone heard of this?