Spinach
Also called True spinach.
| Light | part shade |
|---|---|
| Water | Every 3 days in the growing season, every 8 in winter |
| Humidity | medium |
| Difficulty | moderate |
| Height | Up to 30 cm (12 in) tall |
| Pets | Cats not known, dogs not known |
Pet safety not established for this species.
Edible here means commonly eaten. Nothing on this site is medical or dietary advice.
True spinach is a cool season crop that bolts on long days, which is why it is so often a disappointment sown in May and a success sown in late summer. Give it rich soil, steady moisture and the shoulders of the year, and it crops generously. In hot climates it is worth swapping for Swiss chard or New Zealand spinach, which do the same job on a plate and keep going through heat that finishes true spinach in a week. Sow direct rather than transplanting, thin ruthlessly, and pick the outer leaves rather than pulling whole plants to keep a row going for a month or more. The autumn sowing, given a cloche or a mild winter, stands through the cold and grows away early the following spring.
Ailments observed
| Flowering at the wrong time, or bolting | Long days and warmth. Spinach bolts on day length as much as heat. Grow it in the cool half of the year at both ends, and choose the autumn sowing over a summer one. |
|---|---|
| Spots on the leaves | Downy mildew in wet, crowded conditions. Thin the row, water the soil rather than the leaves, and choose a mildew resistant variety next time. |
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