{"id":2133,"date":"2019-10-08T02:59:28","date_gmt":"2019-10-08T02:59:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/?p=2133"},"modified":"2019-10-08T02:59:36","modified_gmt":"2019-10-08T02:59:36","slug":"spinach","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/2019\/10\/08\/spinach\/","title":{"rendered":"Spinach"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

S<\/strong>pinacia oleracea<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Introduction<\/strong>: Spinach originated in Asia and reached\nEurope during the Middle Ages. It is one of the most popular leaf vegetables\nbecause it is quick and highly productive. The harvest can start within a month\nof planting and it can be out of the ground within 2 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Climate: <\/strong>This is very much a cool weather crop,\ngrowing best at a mild 60 – 65\u00b0F during the day and even lower at night (down\nto 40 – 45\u00b0F). It is quite hardy and can tolerate temperatures as low as 20\u00b0F. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach doesn\u2019t like hot weather and will be unhappy (and probably\nbolt) when it gets above 75\u00b0F. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutritional content<\/strong>: Spinach is rich in iron, but this is very water soluble and\neasily leached out by boiling. It is also a source of vitamins A (beta carotene),\nC and K, folate, luteine and various useful phytochemicals. It contains about\n100 calories per pound.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach also contains mildly toxic oxalic\nacid, which can make calcium somewhat less available in the body. Fortunately\nthis is not a significant problem to anyone with a reasonable intake of\ncalcium. You will still get more calcium from eating spinach than you will lose\nfrom ingesting the oxalic acid. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oxalic acid may also contribute to the formation of kidney stones,\nso anyone prone to them\nshould probably avoid spinach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ease of growing:<\/strong> As with many other crops, spinach is easy to grow if you give it\nthe right conditions, which in this case means cool weather and short days. It\nis usually grown as a spring and fall crop, with the latter being easiest.\nForget about trying to grow spinach in warm weather, no sooner does it reach\nany size than it bolts (in fact it sometimes bolts before it reaches any size at all!)  <\/p>\n\n\n\n
About Spinach<\/strong> \u00a0<\/strong>

Seed facts<\/strong>
Germ temp: 35 (55 – 65) 75\u00b0F
Germination time: 5 – 22 days
62 days \/ 32\u00b0F
22 days \/ 41\u00b0F
12 days \/ 50\u00b0F * Optimum
7 days \/ 59\u00b0F
6 days \/ 68\u00b0F
5 days \/ 77\u00b0F
Seed viability: 2 – 4 years
Germination percentage: 60%
Weeks to grow transplants: 3 – 4 \u00a0

Planning facts<\/strong>
Hardiness: Hardy
Growing temp: 60 – 65\u00b0F day
\u00a0\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a040 – 45\u00b0F night
Plants per person: 10 per planting
Plants per sq ft: 9 \u00a0

Planting<\/strong>
Spring crop:
Start: 8 wks before last frost
Plant out: 4 wks before last frost
Direct sow:
Spring: 6 wks before last frost
Fall: 6 – 8 wks before first frost
Succession sow: Every 2 wks \u00a0

Harvest facts<\/strong>
Days to harvest: 40 – 60
Yield per plant: 6 – 8 oz
Yield per sq ft: \u00bd – 2 lb sq ft
\u00a0 <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n\n\n\n

Soil<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

pH 6.0 (6.5) 7.0<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach is a fast growing and fairly hungry plant and does best in\na soil that is rich in humus, moisture retentive and contains lots of nitrogen\nand potassium. A light and well-drained soil is best as it will warm up quickly\nin spring. It should also be fairly neutral as spinach doesn\u2019t like acid soil.\nIt is quite\ntolerant of saline soil. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soil preparation<\/strong>: For best growth spinach needs a steady supply of available\nnutrients. It likes organic matter, so incorporate 2\u02dd of compost or aged manure\ninto the top 10\u02dd of soil (where most feeder roots are found), along with a\nfertilizer mix. It loves manure and can even thrive in soil containing fresh\nmanure (though ideally this should be incorporated the previous autumn).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach doesn\u2019t like acid soil, so lime if necessary. Not too much\nlime though, as it doesn\u2019t like very alkaline soil either!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planning<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Where<\/strong>: Spinach really doesn\u2019t like heat and in warmer areas it will do\nbetter on a site that has light shade during the hottest part of the day. When\ngrowing in cool weather it should be in full sun. Raised beds are good because\nthey warm up quickly in spring and tend to be well-drained. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rotate spinach (and the related beet, chard and quinoa) so it\ndoesn\u2019t grow in the same place for at least 3 years. The plants should have\ngood air circulation to minimize disease problems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When<\/strong>: More than any other common crop, spinach doesn\u2019t like warm\nweather, in fact it actually germinates best at only 50\u00b0F. If you look at Seed facts<\/strong> you will notice that it germinates more rapidly at higher\ntemperatures, but less seed will germinate. At 70\u00b0F only about half of the\nseeds may germinate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

You have several options of when to grow spinach: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spring<\/strong>: You must sow spinach early if you are to get a useful crop\nbefore heat and lengthening days cause it to bolt. Start the first spinach\nplants indoors about 8 weeks before the last frost date and plant it out about\n4 weeks later. Direct sow your first outdoor crop 6 weeks before the last frost\ndate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Don\u2019t stop with one planting, you should be able to make 2 – 3\nsuccession sowings 2 weeks apart, and maybe more, depending upon how quickly the weather warms up. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Summer<\/strong>: If you live in a climate with cool summers you may be able to\ngrow spinach right through the summer. Just succession sow every 2 – 3 weeks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If you don\u2019t have cool summers then forget about spinach, there\nare plenty more fish in the sea. See Warm weather alternatives to spinach<\/strong> below.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Autumn<\/strong>: Spinach does best as a fall crop, as it is much less prone to\nbolting in the shorter, cooler days and the leaves grow larger and more\nsucculent. Sow the seeds when the soil starts to cool down, which may be a\ncouple of months before the first autumn frost date. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The biggest problem when planting fall spinach comes when the soil\nis too warm. It must be cool enough for good germination (ideally below 60\u00b0F),\notherwise germination may be poor. To improve your chances you might try\ncooling the soil by frequent watering, and using shade cloth. Another option is\nto pre-germinate the seed in the fridge. Put the seeds on a moist paper towel,\nput it in a plastic bag and store in the fridge for a week. They should then\ngerminate quite well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Winter<\/strong>: In areas with mild winters, some varieties of spinach can be\ngrown as a winter crop, starting 4 – 8 weeks before the first fall frost. They\nare hardy down to 25\u00b0F and don\u2019t bolt in the cool, short days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key to success as a winter crop is for the plants to get big enough\nbefore cool weather hits. They will then continue to grow throughout the\nwinter. If they are not big enough, they will just sit there looking sorry for\nthemselves. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach\nwon\u2019t take hard frost unprotected, so in harsher climates it is often grown under\nthe cover of cloches, cold frames or poly tunnels.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Planting<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Direct sowing<\/strong>: This is easier than using transplants and generally more\nsatisfactory. Sow the seed \u00bd\u02dd deep (\u00bc\u02dd in cold soil) and 1 – 2\u02dd apart (either\nbroadcast or in wide rows). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach sown directly into cold spring soil is slow to germinate,\nso some gardeners pre-germinate it before planting. Alternatively you could\nwarm the soil with plastic mulch or cloches. Some gardeners mark the location\nof the slow germinating seeds by sowing a few radishes along with the spinach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thinning<\/strong>: When all of the plants have emerged, thin them to 2 – 4\u02dd apart.\nWhen they are 4\u02dd high thin them again to a final spacing of 4 – 8\u02dd (eat any\nthinnings that are big enough to be worthwhile). Spinach doesn\u2019t like being\novercrowded and will often react by bolting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Transplants<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Starting inside<\/strong>: Spinach doesn\u2019t like transplanting (it can cause bolting), so\nthis is only done under special circumstances. You might do it when you want to\nget an early start to the season, or in late summer, to give it cooler\nconditions than it would get outside.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To minimize root disturbance you should use cell packs or soil\nblocks. You can also multi-plant it by putting several seeds in each cell. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The plants germinate and grow best in cool conditions, so don\u2019t\nlet them get too warm, otherwise they may not perform well when transplanted\noutdoors.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spacing<\/strong>: A single spinach plant doesn\u2019t produce a lot, so you need quite\na few plants to keep yourself supplied with spinach. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Beds<\/strong>: Spinach works well when grown in a wide bed, though it should be\nspaced carefully to avoid overcrowding. The exact spacing will vary according\nto the soil and the variety grown, but generally the following is good:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

8\u02dd (poor soil)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

6\u02dd (average soil)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4\u02dd (good soil)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Rows<\/strong>: Space the plants 2 – 5\u02dd apart, in rows\n12 – 24\u02dd apart. If growing rows on a wide bed you could plant 3 or 4 rows 10\u02dd\napart. . <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Care<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach must grow quickly to produce the highest quality food.\nThis means giving it optimal conditions; as much water and nutrients as it\nrequires and no competition from weeds or crowded neighbors (all these factors\ncan contribute to bolting).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Water<\/strong>: Keep the soil evenly moist (not wet) otherwise the plants may\nbolt. Fortunately this isn\u2019t usually a problem in the cool weather preferred by\nspinach.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach is vulnerable to fungus disease so it is good to keep the\nleaves dry when watering. Use drip irrigation, or water early enough so leaves\ncan dry out quickly and not stay wet all night.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fertilization<\/strong>: Spinach needs a good supply\nof nitrogen for best growth, but it grows in cold soil when not much nitrogen\nis readily available. If your soil isn\u2019t very fertile you should give the\nplants a feed of compost tea, or liquid seaweed, every 2 weeks. You really want\nto keep those plants growing rapidly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Problems<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pests<\/strong>: Pests aren\u2019t usually a huge problem in the\ncool weather that spinach prefers. Slugs and snails, flea beetles and\ncaterpillars will all eat the leaves, but the commonest are leaf miners. These\ntunnel into the leaves and make them useless. Remove any affected leaves (or\nsquash the tiny grubs) and rub off the egg clusters. If they are very bad you\nwill have to use row covers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aphids and leafhoppers can sometimes be a problem because they\ntransmit virus diseases. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many animal pests will go for spinach, particularly rabbits and\ndeer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Disease<\/strong>: Downy mildew is the commonest disease problem, though\nanthracnose, curly top and mosaic virus can all afflict spinach. Keep the\nleaves dry and provide good air circulation to minimize problems. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bolting<\/strong>: Spinach will bolt when the day length is from 12 \u00bd – 15 hours\n(the exact number depends upon the variety, some are more sensitive than\nothers). As with lettuce, warm weather (above 75\u00b0F) may hasten bolting, but\ndoesn\u2019t really cause it. Poor soil, overcrowding, vernalization may also cause the plants to bolt. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cool weather (below 65\u00b0F) may retard bolting, as can frequent harvesting of leaves.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Nutrient\ndeficiency: <\/strong>Spinach\nis somewhat vulnerable to a boron deficiency, which shows itself as small\nyellowish leaves and dark colored roots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Harvesting<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

When<\/strong>: You can gather whole plants (harvest thin to begin with), or you\ncan pick individual leaves (carefully) as soon as they are of sufficient\nquantity and size (3 – 4\u02dd). Don\u2019t take too many leaves from any one plant and\ndon\u2019t let them get larger than 6\u02dd. You can also cut the whole plants, leaving a\ncouple of inches to regenerate so you can harvest again at a later date,<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Once the plants start producing you should harvest regularly and\nenthusiastically, Spinach doesn\u2019t usually stay in peak condition for very long,\nso take advantage of it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The flavor of fall spinach is improved by cool weather and even\nlight frost. It can also be harvested for a lot longer and is less inclined to\nbolt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When spinach gets ready to flower the top leaves become noticeably\ntriangular and the stem elongates. When you see this starting to happen you\nshould harvest as much as you can. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

How<\/strong>: Pinching out the leaves encourages new growth, so keep it\ncropped even if you don\u2019t need it (freeze it). If the leaves get too big and\ntough, try cutting the whole top off of the plant, leaving about 3\u02dd to  re-sprout.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Storage<\/strong>: Use the leaves as soon as possible after harvest, as they will\nonly last for a few days in a plastic bag in the fridge. If you can\u2019t use them\nimmediately then freeze for later\nuse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seed saving<\/strong>: Spinach plants are dioecious (there are separate male and female\nplants) so all plants don\u2019t produce seed. The first plants to flower are males,\nwhich are taller but have smaller leaves. You don\u2019t need a lot of males, but\nsome are necessary for fertilization (1 male for every 2 females). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach is wind pollinated, so it is hard to keep it pure (it must\nbe isolated from other varieties by at least a mile). This essentially means\nonly having one variety flowering at a time (of course you can\u2019t do anything\nabout other plants in the neighborhood). Because of this it is best to grow the\nplants in a cage covered in row cover fabric – it needs to be able to exclude\nvery fine pollen)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Saving the seed is fairly straightforward, just allow a patch of\nplants to bolt (remove any plants that bolt earlier than the rest, or are\nunusual in any way) and let the seed ripen and dry on the plant. Then put the\nseed heads in a paper bag and allow them to dry completely indoors. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One female plant can produce a lot of seed, so you don\u2019t need many\nplants. Only save seed from your best plants of course. Ideally you would save seed from at least\n20 plants to maintain genetic variability.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Unusual\ngrowing ideas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Intercrop<\/strong>: When grown in ideal conditions, spinach is very fast growing and\nmakes a useful crop for interplanting between slower maturing crops.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Salad mix<\/strong>: This fast growing plant makes an excellent salad mix crop. Sow\nthe seeds \u00bd – 1\u02dd apart. Individual leaves are gathered as they reach a useful\nsize (anywhere from 2 – 5\u02dd). These are carefully pinched off (or snipped),\nleaving enough behind to enable the plant to regenerate. Spinach works very\nwell when grown in this way, as bolting isn\u2019t as much of a problem. See Salad Mix<\/strong> for more on this.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Winter crop<\/strong>: Spinach is very cold tolerant and makes a good winter crop for\nthe cool greenhouse or growing frame. If you are lucky it may grow all winter without bolting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Varieties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many modern spinach varieties are lower in oxalic acid, as well as\nbeing more bolt resistant. You will have to experiment to find the best types\nfor your area. Spinach is sometimes divided into smooth and wrinkled leaf (savoyed) types.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Smooth\nleaf<\/strong>: The leaves are lighter in color and fairly flat, which makes\nthem easy to clean. This is the most popular type on the west coast. It is\ncommonly used for salads and as baby greens.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monstreaux\nDe Viroflay <\/strong>– An old\nFrench heirloom with big leaves, does well in winter (50 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Red\ncardinal f1<\/strong> – Red veined – bolts\nquickly – for baby leaves (30 days). <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giant Noble <\/strong>– Slow to bolt (45 days)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oriental\nGiant F1 – <\/strong>Vigorous\nplant with big leaves (35 days)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Monnopa<\/strong> – Low oxalic acid (45 – 55 days) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wrinkled\nleaf<\/strong> (savoyed): These have darker, wrinkled (obviously) leaves that\nare harder to clean than the smooth types. They do better in colder weather and\ntend to be slightly slower to bolt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bloomsdale\nLong Standing – <\/strong>A\nclassic old variety (40 – 60 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Giant\nWinter<\/strong> – A very\ncold hardy type (45 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Merlo\nNero <\/strong>– Italian\nheirloom (48 days)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Hybrids<\/strong>: <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Emu\nF1<\/strong> – The most bolt resistant type (42 days).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Regiment\nF1<\/strong> – Productive, bolt and mildew resistant (40 days) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tyee\nF1<\/strong> – Bolt and mildew resistant (40 days) <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Correnta\nF1<\/strong> – Heat tolerant and bolt resistant for a longer harvest (45\ndays).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kitchen use<\/strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Spinach must be washed carefully to get all of the soil off the\nleaves. This is especially important with the wrinkled leaf varieties. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The nutrients in spinach are easily leached out by boiling water,\nso they should only be cooked for a short time. The best way to leach out the\nmaximum amount of oxalic acid, while losing the minimum nutrients is to boil\nfor one minute in a large volume of boiling water in an uncovered pot.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I like to use spinach raw in salads. The smooth leaved varieties\nare considered superior for this, as they are easier to clean.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Spanakopita<\/strong> \u00a0

2 lb spinach
\u00bc cup parsley
1 oz dill leaves
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
\u00bd cup ricotta cheese
4 tbsp olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
1 bunch green onions
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 eggs, beaten
10 sheets phyllo dough
\u00bc cup olive oil \u00a0

Saut\u00e9 the onions, green onions and garlic in olive oil until translucent.
Add spinach and chopped parsley, cook until wilted and then leave to
cool.

Mix the beaten eggs, dill, feta and ricotta cheese and then stir in the
onion and spinach mix. Oil and layer 5 sheets of phyllo dough into a 9\u02dd
square pan, then spread in the spinach cheese mix. Fold edges over mix
and then oil and layer the other 5 sheets of phyllo dough on top. Fold
edges down into pan to seal. Bake in preheated 350\u00b0F oven for 30 minutes until golden brown. \u00a0 <\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Spinacia oleracea Introduction: Spinach originated in Asia and reached Europe during the Middle Ages. It is one of the most popular leaf vegetables because it is quick and highly productive. … Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2134,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[241],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2133","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-leaf-veg","entry"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/10\/Spinach.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2133","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2133"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2133\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2135,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2133\/revisions\/2135"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2134"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2133"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2133"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/greenmanpublishing.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2133"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}