Leek- Familiar or Queer?by Asmita Gaire | 05-02-2019 11:45 |
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 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, and Chinese onion. Wild leek grows from the bottom to halfway up slopes in sugar maple stands, as well as in flood plains. They prefer rich soil with well-aged and aerated humus and a high pH of 5.5 to 7. It is found in Laurentian sugar maple stands throughout eastern North America. Wild leek plays a very important role in its ecosystem. Its leaves store the minerals from runoff and rainwater, starting as soon as the snow melts. When the leaves decompose a few weeks later, the stored minerals are released and made available to mid-season plants, which have already started growing. The seeds of wild leek may be transported by small rodents, like deer mice, for instance. The bulbs of this plant are eaten for their mild, garlic-like flavour. It is thought that harvesting more than 5 to 7% of the plants in a colony jeopardizes its survival and that a population of fewer than 1,000 plants is endangered. Large colonies of wild leek have practically disappeared because of over-harvesting. It takes 7 to 10 years for a bulb to reach sufficient size to reproduce. That is why it is suggested to eat a few leaves instead of bulbs if we want to let this plant survive in the wild |
