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Babington leek bulbils
Babington leek bulbils
Babington leek bulbils
Babington Leek

Babington perennial leek bulbils pack of 20

£9.99

BABINGTON LEEK – supplied as 20 bulbils plus 10 extra in each pack – SPECIAL OFFER 50% EXTRA FREE
These are the last of our Babington bulbils for this year. We will send you 30 for the price of 20. These are our smaller sized bulbils, but will germinate in exactly the same way. A low maintenance and easy to grow perennial leek which can be harvested every year once established, by cutting at ground level and plants will re-grow into a new leek over the winter and into spring.

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Description

Babington perennial leeks are one of the tastiest, low maintenance and easy to grow perennial vegetables providing a yearly harvest of slender leeks with a hint of garlic. Supplied as 20 dried individual leek bulbils plus a special offer of 10 extra bulbils – each bulbil will produce a leek plant.  They can be sown direct or can be sown in pots and transplanted later when signs of shoots appear. Sow any time between autumn and spring. Babington leeks can be harvested by cutting the leek at the base and leaving the bulb in the ground to re-grow. They can emerge any time between early winter to early spring depending on your climate and location. Very hardy. Please note that leeks go dormant in summer so will die back and then re-emerge in autumn, this is part of their normal life cycle. Bulbils are small clove like forms which grow on top of the stems which the plant produces vegetatively. Please see the second photo to see the approximate size of the bulbils you are purchasing.

About

Babington leeks, Allium Ampeloprasum var Babingtonii, is one of the tastiest and easy to grow perennial vegetables. Named after Charles Cardale Babington, this wild and hardy perennial leek is a native sea shore plant and perennial ancestor to garden leeks. It is extremely low maintenance and ideal for polyculture spaces as it will thrive between other plants and can tolerate a range of soils and positions.

How to grow

Sow any time between Autumn and spring. When your bulbils arrive you can sow direct about 2cm deep allowing 8-10cm space between each bulbil. Alternatively you can sow the bulbils in a roomy pot and just leave outside, when tips emerge, you can carefully separate out the sprouted bulbils and plant them as above.

Harvesting

Simply cut the leeks at the base and leave the bulbs in the ground to re-grow. Harvesting time is usually March to June.

Propagating more plants

Babington leeks are so tasty that you will want to harvest them all, but if you want to increase your stock quickly you need to let some of them flower. The leeks will throw up a very tall stem around July time with very attractive purple flowers. These in turn go on to produce a head of bulbils, each bulbil producing a new leek. The head will naturally bend and plant itself or you can gather bulbils and separate them when the cases are papery and sow in a new spot. As the plants mature, they produce a very large underground bulb with a cluster of ‘mini bulbs’ or offsets which will form clumps of new growth above ground. You can lift and separate and move bulbs around when they are in their dormant stage. You will find leeks popping up in strange places as bulbils sometimes get flung a distance, but it is exciting when that happens! It takes patience to establish a Babington colony, but well worth it and you will have them forever.

Life cycle

The life cycle of the leeks is: Emerge in early winter, harvesting period March to June, flowers emerge July to August (from plants that have not been cut for harvesting), heads of bulbils can be collected in August, plants then go into a period of dormancy and all top growth will disappear until moisture returns. As each year passes the underground bulbs become larger. Timing of growth/flowering cycle may vary according to your location and temperature. Sometimes the heads of bulbils will not form until the second year.

Cooking and eating

Babington Leeks – flowers, stems, bulbs and bulbils are all edible. The leeks have a deep savoury taste and make the most delicious base for soups, are great in omelettes, or just simply sautéed in a pan. They have a garlicky hit too which just adds to their many culinary uses.

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“Thanks for everything, the info sheet was great. I planted the cuttings the day they arrived and have just multi sown the 9 star in seed trays. All very exciting, we’re now planning our perennial area.”

“You are right, perennial kale is fantastic! Thanks so much for the cuttings. I am a convert to having a corner of perpetual kale in the patch!”

“As the evening sun back lit the plants at Incredible Vegetables, I felt I was standing in one of the most important gardens of our time. Wildflowers working alongside an abundance of edimentals and perennial vegetables. A ‘food glade’ to rival the aesthetic of our greatest plant designers.”

– Jon Davies, garden designer, London Glades –

“I love your website and the work you’re doing. What you’re doing is exiting, useful, and one day will help to replace and enhance what human kind has damaged.With that our natural friends will return and we’ll be better for it.”

“Mandy, thank you. I am delighted with this plant – it is so strong and healthy and exceptionally well packaged – all done with loving care obviously. I shall look forward to having more plants from you.”

“Plants all arrived lovely and are growing well. I just wanted to say i was very impressed with the quality of the cuttings.. and its been a pleasure dealing with you. And I look forward to any purchases in the future.”

“The kale cuttings you sent survived the winter and are thriving. Thank you Mandy Barber you are the super hero of edibles, loving your work!!”

“I bought some Skirret seed’s off you last year. Well they grew and yesterday some got cooked and this message is just to say, they were delicious. Looking forward to a lot more next year. Thank you.”

“The Taunton Dean cuttings arrived a short while ago and never have I seen healthier looking cuttings! They are now firmly ensconced in some nice compost and are having a good drink. I even loved the packaging, which will be composted.”

“Hi I just wanted to let you know that I sowed half of my Caucasian spinach seeds and every single one grew, absolutely amazed, thanks for the seeds and keep up the good work.”

“Just to let you know that the lovely healthy looking plants arrived. Your plants are simply outstanding, every single tuber and plant are growing amazingly.”

“The plants arrived safely, I did not expect such magnificent specimens! I didn’t think I would be successful at stratification etc but I now have a whole bunch of Hablitzia seedlings sprouting after following your excellent advice.”

“Just to say, the Daubentons Kale is in the ground and looking well – thanks to the lovely damp compost encasing its roots…you do a good job at your end, I can tell by the way you package. Will be back for more of your wonderful perennials.”

“Thank you so much for all the vegetables, they really are incredible. I’m sure I’ve never before seen a healthier rootball than the one that arrived with our happy looking daubentons kale, and seeds and tubers are thriving thanks to all the useful information provided.”

“Thank you so much for sending such wonderful, healthy and very large plants. They are beautiful !! You packaged them so well and they arrived so quickly – I couldn’t get to the post office till the following day but they were absolutely fine. They’re now potted up and sitting in my ‘cold’ greenhouse while they adjust.”

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Mandy and Julien

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