Growing Spinach, also English spinach

Spinacia oleracea : Amaranthaceae / the amaranth family

Jan F M A M J J A S O N Dec
    P P P P P P P      

(Best months for growing Spinach in New Zealand - cool/mountain regions)

  • P = Sow seed
  • Easy to grow. Sow in garden. Sow seed at a depth approximately three times the diameter of the seed. Best planted at soil temperatures between 50°F and 77°F. (Show °C/cm)
  • Space plants: 8 - 12 inches apart
  • Harvest in 5-11 weeks.
  • Compatible with (can grow beside): Broad beans (fava), cabbage, cauliflower, celery, eggplant (aubergine), onion, peas, strawberry, santolina
  • Baby spinach
  • Young spinach

Green leaf crop. Spinach grows best in cooler weather and quickly runs to seed in warm weather. Can be sown in Fall/Autumn and overwintered if protected by mulch. Not recommended to grow in warm areas. Alternatives suitable for warm areas are Swiss Chard (Silverbeet) or NZ spinach.

Will not grow well in acid soil.

Succession sowing will provide a supply through the winter months.

Culinary hints - cooking and eating Spinach

Use young leaves in salad.
Steam and add to other vegetables.

Your comments and tips

20 Apr 08, Lynton Wright (Unknown climate)
I Find Spinach the most Difficult vegetable to grow. That is to strike
01 May 08, Noelene Smith (Unknown climate)
I have success with this seed. I keep it damp and protected. In the middle of a group of plants I just sprinkle seed. then transplant it before it get over 10-15 cm. Snails are the worst enemy of new shoots so you will have to protect the seed as they shoot.
14 May 08, Janette Jenyns (Unknown climate)
No success at all getting spinach seed to germinate. Have tried planting in egg carton covered with plastic to keep moist by still no luck.
16 May 08, Liz (Unknown climate)
Have you tried soaking in a saucer of water for 24 hours? You may find that the hard coat will soften enough to encourage germination.
30 May 08, Janette Jenyns (Unknown climate)
Success at last - but they took so long to germinate ! The packet said 2 days, but I think it should have said 2 weeks. No luck with the seeds in the egg carton - maybe they were TOO wet?
21 Jul 08, linda (Australia - temperate climate)
I have success growing these seeds in a very large container of well prepared soil. I sprinkled the seeds on the soil and covered them with a thin layer of munch. I placed the container in th south sun and keep moist. They should germinate within a few days.
19 Nov 08, Tony Richardson (Australia - sub-tropical climate)
I've had a lot of success in Sydney, with a small leafed spinach called 'Muscleman'. Named after Popeye, I guess. I planted 2 punnets in March and have been snipping off leaves every day for lunch and dinner 6 months later. It just keeps on giving! Highly recommended.
27 Nov 08, Lee (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
Soak seeds in water for two days. If temperature is over 20 deg., put seeds in fridge for two days before planting.
01 Apr 09, David (Australia - temperate climate)
I found a plastic tray about 30x15cm and 10cm deep, filled it with straight garden soil, watered it planted all sorts of seeds (spinach, wong bok, onions, leeks, celery, brussels, romanesco). Put in a kitchen tidy bag on top of the hot water system and everything (except the celery) sprouted within 4 days. I think it has something to do with the volume of soil and heat/moisture retention. I have since bought 4 more trays and am investigating/experimenting further.
22 Apr 09, Adrian (Australia - cool/mountain climate)
With sudden hot spells in Canberra in March, my spinach seed had limited germination, so I bought 5 punnets of 'Ironman' spinach and planted each punnet clump with a 6 inch spacing to the next in a row of about 2 metres. Sort of cheating, but effective. Will be eating it in four weeks right through to mid September. Wonderful stuff!
Showing 1 - 10 of 114 comments

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