Spinach
Spinacia oleracea
Spinach is a member of the Spinacia family. Its botanical name is Spinacia oleracea. The scientific name epithet oleracea means 'eaten as a vegetable'.
Spinach is a compact green, loose-leaf plant that grows up to about 30cm tall. It is grown for its oval to triangular leaves, which can be eaten either raw or cooked. It is a cool-season plant.
The leaves may be of three types: savoyed (which means crinkly), semi-savoyed (which means less crinkly) and smooth (which means not crinkly).
Spinach grows as an annual and is an edible vegetable. Being an annual plant, it tends to grow best over the course of a single year. Spinach is known for its spreading habit and growing to a height of approximately 60.0 cm (1.95 feet). Popular varieties of Spinach with home gardeners are Bloomsdale long standing, Bloomsdale, Teton Hybrid, Space, and Matador.Spinach tends to need a moderate amount of maintenance, so ensuring that you are aware of the soil, sun, ph and water requirements for this plant is quite important to ensure you have a happy and healthy plant.
This plant info is provided by the myfolia gardener's wiki. All details about Spinach have been kindly provided by our members.
How to grow Spinach
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Full Sun
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Medium
Spinach should be kept evenly watered to ensure good growth. Feed regularily with compost tea or fish emulsion every 10 days or so. When plants are established, mulch to keep moisture levels consistent and to deter weeds.
Plant in a location that enjoys full sun and remember to water moderately. As a guideline, Spinach does best between USDA Hardiness Zones 6 and 9. Spinach needs a loamy soil with a ph of 6.0 to 7.0 (weakly acidic soil - neutral soil). Spinach is generally regarded as a half hardy plant, so remember to protect this plant from frosts and low temperatures.Growing Spinach from seed
Spinach seeds germinate at relatively low temperatures, so germination does not require greenhousing or heated environments.
Try to aim for a seed spacing of at least 3.12 inches (8.0 cm) and sow at a depth of around 0.49 inches (1.25 cm). For optimal germination, soil temperature should be a minimum of 8°C / 46°F.By our calculations*, you should look at sowing Spinach about 60 days before your last frost date .
Transplanting Spinach
Spinach doesn’t tend to like being transplanted as seedlings, so sow spinach seeds directly into the ground as soon as the ground can be worked.
For a continuous harvest, try to plant every 2 – 3 weeks. Thin spinach seedlings when they are about 4 inches (10 cm) tall to prevent overcrowding (you can use the cut seedlings in salads).
Harvesting Spinach
Harvest spinach leaves as you require them from the outside of the plant – or harvest entire plants when they reach maturity.
Companion plants for Spinach
These plants have been known to grow well alongside Spinach so consider planting:
Plant peas and beans around spinach – they provide great natural shade.
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Spinach loves Pea
Peas provide natural shade for spinach.
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Spinach loves Bean
Bean plants provide natural shade for spinach.
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Spinach likes Cabbage
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Spinach likes Cauliflower
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Spinach likes Celery
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Spinach likes Eggplant
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Spinach likes Onion
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Spinach loves Strawberry
Repellent plants for Spinach
These plants will not grow well with Spinach so avoid planting these within close proximity:
Common Spinach problems
These problems, diseases and pests are known to affect Spinach plants:
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Also known as greenfly and blackfly, Aphids are a common sap-sucking garden p...
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A generic term for a wide range of small leaf-eating beetles with powerful ba...
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Cucumber Mosaic Virus (CMV) was first found in Cucumbers, hence its name - ho...
Other names for Spinach
Spinach perpetual
Misspellings: Spinacea oleracea, Spinacia oleria
Latest Spinach Reviews
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20 Jul 2012
Lily1013's Spinach was Reviewed day 42
Planted four, harvested one. The other three bolted quickly due to the heatwave that hit not long after transplanting them.
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26 Jan 2012
stellvilla's Spinach 'Teton Hybrid' was Reviewed day 91
Good color, appears to be growing, but very slowly.
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16 Dec 2011
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06 Dec 2011
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04 Jun 2011
murmuration's Giant Nobel Spinach was
Reviewed day 194
I’ve grown this variety in both the spring and autumn for three seasons now and it never fails to thrive and produce even in cold Colorado winters. Tastes wonderful as well; highly recommended.
Spinach care instructions
How long does Spinach take to grow?
When should I plant Spinach?
Our when to plant Spinach estimates are relative to your last frost date. Enter your frost dates and we'll calculate your sowing and planting dates for you!
Footnotes
Popular varieties of Spinach
- Bloomsdale long standing
- Bloomsdale
- Teton Hybrid
- Space
- Matador
- Tyee
- Giant Nobel
- Baby's Leaf Hybrid
- Baby Leaf
- America
View the complete variety list for Spinach »
Spinach Forums
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