Spinach is a valuable annual plant that is not afraid of cold and frost. Leaves are used for food. And the number of options for its use is practically unlimited. They eat spinach fresh and boiled. This is the basis of dietary cuisine, the plant is useful for any problems with the heart and lungs, with anemia. The variety of varieties is surprising, among which there are early ripe and late ripe. Thanks to this, it is possible to sow them throughout the summer and constantly have fresh herbs on hand.
A little bit about culture
Growing spinach from seeds is a fairly simple task, which even beginner gardeners can do. Today, this culture is gaining popularity again, but at one time they completely forgot about it. Our ancestors perfectly understood what was useful, therefore they used it for food centuries ago. This is a wonderful leafy vegetable, the nutritional value of which cannot be noted. If any of your relatives have been diagnosed with anemia, then recommend that they regularly eat spinach.
What does he look like?
At first glance, the bushes cannot be distinguished from sorrel. But if you look closely, there is a significant difference between them. In spinach, the leaves are more rounded and slightly bumpy. And the sorrel is elongated, elongated, with a light color. Well, you will never mistake them for taste. Sorrel is sour, and spinach is quite savory. It is tender, with a slight bitterness and sourness. It’s hard to describe, but it’s worth a try once, and you will never forget the taste.
Benefits for the body
We all know the main sources of protein, these are meat, eggs and legumes. But the fact that spinach contains almost as much protein as beans, many hear for the first time. Therefore, if you are interested in sources of vegetable protein, but there are problems with the assimilation of legumes, then pay attention to this amazing plant.
In addition, young bushes are a source of vitamins A, C, E, K. A huge supply of iodine and iron makes spinach ideal for pregnant and lactating women. It stimulates the intestines and is perfectly absorbed by the body. Be sure to teach your children to eat spinach.
Choose a place to land
The best predecessors are tomatoes, zucchini and peppers. You need to keep this in mind when planning where to plant spinach. Seeds are distinguished by excellent germination. Usually, seedlings can be expected on the tenth day, provided that they get into the soil dry. If you want to speed up the process, then just soak them in a nutrient solution. Greens grow well on highly fertile soils. Therefore, if sand prevails on the site, then it will be necessary to purchase additional biohumus and forest humus in order to fertilize the garden well. Loamy soils are better for planting spinach seeds.
Winter sowing
Do you want to make healthy salads from early spring and treat the native fruits of your garden? Then get spinach seeds in early autumn. They can be sown before winter. No special conditions are required for this; greens are unpretentious. However, from all the beds it is better to choose the one on which the vegetables grew and organic fertilizers were applied. The only thing: before sowing spinach seeds, you need to abandon the use of fresh manure, as this affects the taste of the leaves. They can be sown before winter, due to which friendly seedlings will appear in the garden with the first spring days.
Soil preparation
Each experienced gardener with the end of the summer season begins to prepare beds for spring sowing. If you plan to plant winter crops, then nothing changes. For spinach, you need to dig a lot well, add humus. Biohumus as well as mineral fertilizers are well suited. Moreover, depending on preferences, you can take complex or add 30 g of superphosphate and 15 g of potassium chloride per 1 m 2 . At the same time, liming of the soil is carried out, if necessary. After making all the substances, the soil is left until spring. Around the beginning of April, urea is also recommended.
Landing pattern
The first step is to prepare the garden. To do this, you need to dig well and loosen the earth. Growing spinach from seeds does not imply any particular difficulties. Sow them to a depth of three centimeters, in rows. The distance between them is at least 20 cm. You can not worry about thickening. As soon as after the seedlings wait for the first true leaves, thinning up to 10 cm can be performed. At the same time, top-dress. After two weeks, the final thinning is performed. Now a distance of 20 cm is left between the plants. The removed greens can be used as food.
Greenhouse cultivation
This allows you to get the earliest harvest, as well as engage in agriculture in the northern regions. Since you can plant spinach seeds directly into the ground, you can do without growing seedlings on the windowsill. The only difficulty is that this culture is very photophilous. Therefore, experts recommend sowing it in closed ground, starting in late February. If there is additional highlighting, then you can start earlier. Consumption of 20 g per m².
Planting spinach seeds is carried out in a dry form. It’s easier to distribute them in the furrow, because the seeds do not stick together. But in order to accelerate the germination of seeds and to obtain more friendly seedlings, they are recommended to soak them for 1-2 days in warm water. To make the process easier, you can slightly dry before planting. The optimum temperature in the greenhouse is from 10 to 18 degrees.
Planting spinach seeds in open ground
Dates vary by region and climate. But spinach is not afraid of frost, so you can not be very careful. As soon as the earth warms up slightly, usually this is the end of April, you can get down to business. In the southern regions, you can start sowing at an earlier date. You can also perform the soaking procedure.
Additional information is provided on each bag. Along with the description of the variety, it is usually said how to plant spinach seeds in open ground. To do this, you need pre-prepared beds. On 1 m² leaves no more than 5 g. If the variety is early, then after 30 days you can cook fresh salads. Later varieties have to wait longer, up to 50 days.
Precocious culture
This is its main plus. Spinach can be planted throughout the summer season, and in the greenhouse generally grow all year round. In order to harvest without interruption, you need to sow the plants in small portions with an interval of 1-2 weeks. Then you will be provided with fresh herbs constantly.
The number of single seeding will depend on the consumption of the final product. If you plan to grow spinach for sale, then several large beds stand out. Two weeks after sowing, the first is taken for the second and so on. If greenery is grown only for your family, then you can break the garden into pieces and sow gradually, from one end to the other. Since planting spinach seeds in open ground is not difficult at all, this procedure will not take you much time.
Harvest
The greens become suitable for collection as soon as 5-6 adult leaves appear on the bush. As a rule, this occurs one and a half to two months after sowing. You should not wait longer, because then the leaves become stiff and unsuitable for consumption. There are two harvesting techniques. The first is that the bushes are cut off completely. Accordingly, the next batch can be planted on the vacated seat. In another case, you can cut the leaves separately until the plant starts to shoot. If you do not plan to collect seeds, then it is better to apply the first.
Diseases and pests
This culture is not too loved by insects, apparently because of the spicy taste. But downy mildew can affect plantings, so you should remember about the need for processing. Better yet, choose modern varieties that are resistant to this ailment. It is useful to study the rule of cultural neighborhood. With proper placement, plants are able to protect each other.
Spinach care consists in the fact that the plants are regularly watered and loosened, weeded and fed with urea. But potash and phosphorus fertilizers are not recommended for the simple reason that spinach quickly goes into the arrow. In this case, the collection of leaves stops, as they become coarse.
Seed Harvesting
Many summer residents are interested in how to collect spinach seeds. There is nothing complicated about it. To obtain seeds in advance, select some of the strongest plants, male and female. The leaves they do not cut and watered abundantly. After flowering, male plants can be removed; they have already performed their function. When female spinach leaves turn yellow, and the lower fruit cells begin to open, then the seeds have ripened. Now the bushes are cut and suspended for four days. After that, the seeds can be collected and packaged in paper bags. Germination is very good.
Strawberry spinach
This name of many gardeners is perplexing. What is this mutation, how can berries grow on spinach? The plant is already overgrown with myths in which it is presented as a miracle of genetic engineering. In fact, this plant is only a distant relative of modern varieties of spinach. Closer it is even to a wild swan.
The leaves taste quite neutral, but quite suitable as a leaf base for a salad. As for the berries, they have absolutely no taste, and have nothing to do with strawberries or raspberries. Rather, it is a sham. Due to this appearance, the plant has gained wide popularity, as, among other things, it also decorates your garden.
This is a mid-season culture. Strawberry spinach seeds ripen in July, subject to seedling cultivation. It turns out that if you want to get juicy bushes for food, then this variety is the most inappropriate. But for decorative purposes, to surprise relatives and friends, you can sow a small bed.
Seed production
Get ready for the fact that all friends will ask you for planting material for this mysterious plant. Spinach seeds (the photo clearly demonstrates the beauty of the fruit) are just in those berries that everyone likes so much. Therefore, in mid-July, it will be necessary to collect ripe fruits and mash them with a fork, add water and leave for several days. After that, you will need to wash the mass with a fine sieve. The seeds cleaned from mucus are laid out on a paper towel to dry. After they become loose, you can pour them into a paper bag and put away for storage.
Samosev
If the berries are not picked, then they will be an excellent material for sowing the beds for next year. They are stored for a long time on the bushes, so if you don’t specially pick them off, they crumble only by September-October. In this case, they are not only perfectly preserved under the snow, but also pass stratification. In the spring, friendly and strong shoots will appear on the bed. The only drawback of this planting can be considered the lack of a sowing system. Young plants will come out in bunches and will have to be thinned out well.
Instead of a conclusion
If you have a garden, then spinach must grow on it. This unique greens, rich in vitamins and minerals, protein and iron, is a source of health and well-being. If you live in an apartment, then no one bothers to make a small garden on the windowsill. To grow spinach, you will need boxes with a height of 15-20 cm. For one plant, a square of 15 * 15 cm will be required. After about 30 days you will have adult bushes that can be used for several months until they leave the arrow. During this time, you can have time to prepare a shift for aging bushes.