The
leek is a
vegetable, a
cultivar of
Allium ampeloprasum, the broadleaf wild leek. The edible part of the plant is a bundle of leaf sheaths that is sometimes erroneously called a
stem or stalk. The
genus Allium also contains the
onion,
garlic,
shallot,
scallion,
chive,
[1] and
Chinese onion.
[2]
Historically, many
scientific names were used for leeks, but they are now all treated as cultivars of
A. ampeloprasum.
[3] The name 'leek' developed from the
Old English word
leac.
[4] Three closely related vegetables,
elephant garlic,
kurrat and Persian leek or Tareh, are also cultivars of
A. ampeloprasum, although different in their uses as food.
Rather than forming a tight
bulb like the onion, the leek produces a long cylinder of bundled leaf sheaths that are generally
blanched by pushing soil around them (trenching). They are often sold as small seedlings in flats that are started off early in
greenhouses, to be planted out as weather permits. Once established in the garden, leeks are hardy;
many varieties can be left in the ground during the winter to be harvested as needed.