My favorite leek variety. Watch the video series  A tall narrow type of leek that is ideal for home gardeners because of size as well as ease of harvest and cleaning.  The top and bottom can be slashed off quickly in the garden leaving long, dirt free, self blanched stalks.  No need to plant them deeply or spend a lot of time washing dirt out.  The tops can still be used for cooking and stock of course.

If Bulgarian Giant has one downfall it is hardiness.  I start seeing some damage on some leeks below 20 degrees F.  I've been selecting against that of course, but there is going to be a limit.  Short fat leeks seem to be hardier, which may be one reason for their popularity.  Even if you can't overwinter, this variety should still make a good summer leek for fast growth and size and they can be pulled up with some dirt on the roots and held in a cellar or similar into the winter.  Some winter protection might help extend the season.  Elliot Coleman's books Winter Harvest Handbook and Four Season Garden are excellent resources for extending the season in cold climates using unheated covers.

I plant mine in mid to late winter and transplant out in the spring so they have lots of time to get big.  They are in eating here from mid summer through to the next spring.  Read more about growing Leeks and Bulgarian Giant here.

Folded origami seed packet has 450+ seeds.  That is enough to grow a lot of leeks for a couple years, or save seed for yourself.  Saving seed is easy and they won't cross pollinate with other onions or garlic, just with other leeks and possibly Elephant Garlic.  I would recommend getting some new genes into the mix though as these come from a pretty limited gene pool and eventually inbreeding may become a problem.  I address that and what I would do to continue refining or working with these in the last video of the series.