It is a vegetable that was not cultivated until the 17th century in European lands. It is rich in minerals and vitamins, specifically in A and E, they also have a large amount of antioxidants. It is a plant whose harvest and growth occurs in a short space of time.
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When are spinach planted?
It is an annual plant that does not present difficulties to be cultivated. Regarding temperatures and climates, it is not a friend of high temperatures and summer, since its flower grows quickly and the leaves take on bitterness, for this reason it is recommended that they be cultivated in autumn and spring, where temperatures are not so extreme and there is certain regularity.
It is a plant that grows well in full sun, when the temperature ranges between 24 and 26º degrees, it is recommended that it be shaded and grown in a semi-shaded place. On the contrary, if it is able to resist cold temperatures better, but it does not tolerate frost or snowfall well as they damage its leaves, however, if you live in an area where low temperatures predominate, it is enough to cover them with a thermal blanket, in the last days of autumn.
It likes loose soils. Fertile and fresh, that has a good depth and is well drained. Regarding its subscriber, it demands potassium with the leaves and slurry of the Russian Comfrey and nitrogen, which receives it, putting it close to its nettle growing area.
How do you plant spinach plants?
Sowing should be done in spring and autumn, but before carrying it out, fertilizer, topsoil or earthworm humus should be poured onto the ground and buried lightly in the soil. It is recommended that the seeds be soaked, for example in a glass jar, for a whole day. The planting will be done in different rows on the ground, one and a half centimeters deep and with a separation of about thirty centimeters between the different rows, and twelve or fifteen centimeters between each plant, then the seeds are lightly wrapped and compacted with the soil with a trowel, they should be watered just after planting and covered with mulch, earthworm humus or coconut fiber, and then covered with a blanket ends to maintain heat and humidity, they should not be sown above 27º or 28º degrees since with that temperature the seeds cannot germinate, the ideal when sowing them is that there are about 5º or 8º degrees. Birth occurs after about twenty or twenty-two days.
When planting in spring, choose spinach with smooth leaves, as they grow faster, while in autumn; choose the variety with rough or bristling leaves.
Thinning
When the spinach has grown about four or five centimeters, thinning should be done, leaving a space between plant and plant of about eight or ten centimeters, and if weeds appear around them, weed them out, pulling them out by hand.
Plantation.
If you prefer, you can make a seedbed, and transplant the seeds when they are about twelve centimeters high. After this process, they go to the ground, dig some holes and irrigate them with water so that the subsoil gradually picks up some moisture. The spinach plants are removed from the seedbeds and the roots are loosened from the bottom so that their rooting in the soil flourishes. The plants are introduced into the holes and compacted in the ground so that they settle well, a little humus is thrown into the ground, around the entire plant and then it is well mixed with the soil of the land, to finish the process is slightly watered. It is recommended to put the plants until the first pair of leaves in the ground
They prefer an acid pH that is between six and seven. If you don’t have that pH level, the best option is to add limestone, so the soil will reach that point that spinach demands. Before adding the limestone , you should know well the levels of magnesium and calcium that your soil has, and based on this, you will know which limestone is the most suitable to add to it. In the event that the magnesium it has is in large quantity, the limestone that corresponds to it would be of the calcitic type. It is recommended that the limestone be added about two or three months before sowing, so that the entire soil absorbs it well. When you have added it you should check if the ph. is already correct.
The soil in which the spinach is planted must be fertilized above all carefully, and must be rich in organic matter, contain manure, alfalfa or cottonseed meal, all those that have a good level of nitrogen. A few centimeters in total of fertilizer should be put so that the soil is well enriched. You must check the presence of possible stones or hard pieces of earth, and eliminate them before adding any type of fertilizer, for this use the rake.
Irrigation.
They are plants that like humidity very much, so they appreciate that they are watered quite frequently to keep the soil moist, but it should not be abused, nor flooded because the roots could suffer consequences since they can rot. The temperature around it will indicate and mark the times it needs to be watered, normally one or two watering per week would be the most convenient.
Its correct drainage must be ensured, for this there must be a suitable area in your orchard or garden to plant it and that it can develop correctly, if you do not have such a place you can plant them in pots. In the event that if you have a garden, but you want to make it somewhat elevated, you can use boards made of wood, specifically of the cedar variety, since it is a type of wood that, despite constantly receiving water, does not reach to rot The spinach plant does not require a large space to develop, since it is a small plant that does not have very deep roots.
Forty days have to pass after sowing, so that the first spinach leaves can be harvested, those that have received more heat and have developed earlier. They must be about eight or ten centimeters in order to be collected and can be done with your hands or with scissors, sheet by sheet. If you want to cut the entire bush, you must make the cut below the leaves. Some bushes can be left to finish their cycle and thus be able to collect the seeds.
Pests
When weeds grow around the spinach they should be removed because they can contain diseases or pests and stick to them.
• The beet fly: these insects leave larvae that are eliminated using “bacillus thuringiensis”.
• The Abas aphid: nematodes, the red spider, and be very careful with snails and slugs.
• Spinach diseases: Spinach downy mildew stands out.
