How to grow Spinach

Spinacia oleracea

A cool-season leafy green that grows best at 15–20 °C. Hot, dry weather and lengthening days make it bolt (run to flower), so it is sown in spring and again in late summer.

Quick facts

Type	Vegetable
Family	Amaranthaceae
Light	Partial shade
Soil pH	6–7
Frost	tolerates light frost
Soil for sowing	from 5 °C
Germination	10 days
Seedlings ready	30 days
Sowing to harvest	45 days
Where it grows	Greenhouse, Open ground, At home

When to plant

Sow for seedlings about 6 weeks before planting out.

It tolerates light frost: plant out in open ground about three weeks before your last spring frost.

In an unheated greenhouse everything moves about three weeks earlier.

The first harvest comes about 45 days after the shoots appear.

Frost dates · When to plant

Care

Greenhouse

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Germination	every 2 days	10…20 °C	—
Growth	every 3 days	10…20 °C	nitrogen, at the start of the stage
Harvest	every 3 days	10…20 °C	—

Open ground

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Germination	every 2 days	5…18 °C	—
Growth	every 4 days	5…20 °C	nitrogen, at the start of the stage
Harvest	every 4 days	5…20 °C	—

At home

Stage	Watering	Temperature	Feeding
Germination	every 2 days	15…20 °C	—
Growth	every 2 days	15…20 °C	nitrogen, at the start of the stage
Harvest	every 2 days	15…20 °C	—

Growing notes

Light

Sun or partial shade; light shade keeps plants cooler in warm weather. Full sun suits spring and autumn crops.

Soil

Fertile, moisture-retentive, well-drained soil rich in organic matter, pH 6–7.

Care

Sow 1–2.5 cm deep. Spinach is a thirsty crop; in dry weather give 25–50 mm of water a week, watering in the morning. Side-dress with a nitrogen fertiliser about 3–4 weeks after sowing or at thinning. Pick the outer leaves when they are 8–15 cm long so the centre keeps growing.

Pests and diseases of Spinach

Sources

Figures checked against these sources.