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Spinacia oleracea
Spinach
| A versatile and nutritious vegetable, eaten raw and cooked, high in vitamins A and C, it is one of the most challenging to grow. Plants need cool moist weather or they will bolt, forming blossoms and seeds in high temperatures and increasing sun during spring. Use bolt-, mildew- and yellow fusarium-resistant varieties. Plant seeds as early in spring as possible, 6 to 8 weeks before last frost date. Or plant, in late summer and fall 1 to 1½ months before first frost date. In mild winter areas, seeds can also be sown in winter. Soil should drain well, and have adequate water. Thin every other plant when leaves begin to crowd, and eat thinnings. Plants benefit from regular high-nitrogen fertilizer. Harvest 4 to 6 weeks after seeds sown, when leaves are 6 to 8 inches long. In summer, try New Zealand Spinach (Tetragonia expansa) or Malabar Spinach (Basella alba) which are warm-growing vegetables with spinach-like taste. |
Varieties of Spinach have either smooth or crinkled leaves. Savoy types with crinkled leaves are more difficult to clean. Harvest individual leaves or entire plants. A cool-season annual.
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Attributes - Spinacia oleracea
Plant Type: Vegetable
Height: 1 ft. to 1 ft. 6 in.
Width: 1 ft. 6 in.
Sunlight: Full Sun, Partial Sun
Notes: Edible, Fragrant. Susceptible to Aphids, Caterpillars.
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