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| Photo Credit: Gerald Klingaman |
| Savoy-leafed spinach has dark green, crinkly leaves. |
Of all the green vegetables, spinach is often considered one of the best – useful both fresh and cooked. Nutritionally, it’s mostly loaded with lots of vitamin A, and current research indicates it may also be a rich source of antioxidants.
Spinach (Spinacia oleracea) is an annual that flowers (or “bolts”) when days get warm during late spring and there’s more than 14 hours of light. It can be grown anywhere in the country, but planting must conform to the plant’s requirement for cool and short-day conditions. The first planting should be seeded as early as the garden can be worked in the spring. Fall planting should be made in late August, with leaves ready to pick in October or November. In milder parts of the country (Zone 7 and south), an overwinter planting can be made, with seed planted in late October for an early spring harvest. Spinach is usually large enough to begin cutting about eight weeks after planting. In the home garden, this vegetable should be planted in rows, with six to 12 seeds per foot of row. Expect each foot of row to yield about a pound of fresh leaves. Spinach is a heavy feeder, so add ¼ cup of ammonium sulfate (spinach has a high sulfur requirement) per 10 feet of row when plants are 2 inches tall, then again after the first harvest to keep the plants growing vigorously. Harvest can be total – with the plants cut off belowground – or a bit of stem can be left so the plants will regrow. (Commercial growers use this method and usually mow their spinach fields two or three times a season to maximize yield.)
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