Rules for harvesting and storing leeks
A vegetable, like leeks, is a useful ingredient that is used in the preparation of many dishes. Naturally, if you are engaged in the cultivation of leeks in your own garden, sooner or later the question arises of when it should be harvested and how it is properly stored. Consider how the leeks are harvested and stored in such a way that it retains all the useful elements.
When to harvest leeks
When is the best time to remove a vegetable from the garden?
Asking when to harvest leeks, first of all, you need to pay attention directly to how long after harvesting it is planned to eat it. In the event that its leaf is immediately used for food, then it is possible to pluck it throughout the entire time of active growth of the plant.
It is also quite simple to determine the timing of harvesting such a crop if the plans are to store it until spring. Thus, the harvesting process should be carried out in the fall, preferably in the month of October. It is recommended not to delay this process until the beginning of winter, especially in Siberia and the Moscow region. In the event that the winter is mild enough in the region, it is not at all necessary to harvest the onions. You can simply cover it without collecting it from the garden, and only then collect it as needed.
In the event that there is a desire for the storage of leeks to be correct, it is necessary to accurately approach the harvesting process. To do this, you must dig the onion out of the ground as carefully as possible so that its stem is not damaged. After that, the plant is carefully prepared for further storage. You can store any type of leek in completely different ways. Regardless of the option chosen, after digging the vegetable out of the ground, the following steps must be followed:
- get rid of yellowed and damaged leaves completely;
- by 2/3 parts you need to cut off the tops that remain;
- reduce the root exactly by half.
The part of the leek that remains must first be washed very well, and then dried. After that, it will be possible to consider how to store this type of vegetable and how to further harvest it for the winter. At the same time, we must not forget that the timing of harvesting will depend only on when the plant is planned to be used.
Existing storage options
If you have a question about how to harvest and store leeks, then in this case you should consider all these points in stages. About how to properly store this garden culture, today on the Internet there are a huge number of all kinds of tips and tricks. If you want fresh and green onions to be on the table all winter, you need to consider in detail all the conditions for proper storage of the culture.
In general, this version of onion can be stored for a fairly large amount of time, since it can be in its normal form, suitable for consumption, for more than 5 months.Regardless of how long it will simply lie, all the beneficial substances in the leaves will smoothly pass into the stems, thereby making it even tastier and healthier. Consider all the methods by which it will be possible to store the entire volume of the crop of a given plant.
Storing this vegetable in the basement
If you want to store the vegetable in the basement, the first step is to prepare so that the onions are placed in the box containing the sand. Naturally, you can come up with your own options, but this is the most appropriate way. In this case, you should pay attention to the fact that the optimal humidity will be 80%, and the temperature should be within -10 or 10 ° C. At sufficiently high temperatures, the onion will begin to wilt, and if it is excessively dry, it will simply dry out.
In order for the stems to not be deformed or damaged, the bow must be placed strictly vertically. At the same time, a layer of sand of 12 cm should be placed between each plant. In the absence of a basement, do not lose heart, since this process can be carried out even on the balcony. At the same time, the timing of its preservation will depend on how carefully the preparation for this process was carried out. The vegetable must be wrapped and covered without fail so that at a temperature of -70 ° C it can feel good enough and be suitable for consumption.
Proper refrigerator storage
As soon as the harvesting of leeks is completed, it is imperative to prepare a place where it will be in the future. In the absence of a basement or balcony, you should not worry, as it is possible to safely put it in the refrigerator. But before that you need to do the following:
- first, sort it out as carefully as possible;
- the strongest and best plants should be left;
- after that, you need to carefully trim the roots and the leaves directly;
- next, it is important to pre-cool the onion to the temperature at which it will be located;
- as soon as this process is carried out, put several pieces of this vegetable in each bag;
- after that, all the bags are tightly closed and placed in the refrigerator.
In the event that the package is very tightly closed, the shelf life will be increased several times. This is due to the fact that only when closed, the bag does not allow air to pass to the onion, thereby preventing it from withering. In addition, in this form, no microorganisms that can lead to a rapid decay process will get to the vegetable. Naturally, everyone is free to choose the option that suits them, but do not forget that, even while in the freezer, onions will not lose all their nutrients. Also, a no less common option is dried onions, which are later used as a seasoning. To do this, it is enough just to dry it and can be safely used when cooking.
If you are going to remove this garden crop from the garden, first of all, you must determine which time will be most optimal for this, and only after that start choosing a method for further storage. At the same time, it is very important to determine not only how the fruit itself will be preserved, but also its seeds directly. Knowing how to store onions from your own garden, mistakes will be excluded, and a high-quality harvest is guaranteed.