how to harvest spinach

wikiHow is a “wiki,” similar to Wikipedia, which means that many of our articles are co-written by multiple authors. The heat will stress the plants and your freshly cut leaves will be wilted. Spinach can be harvested by cutting the outer leaves off periodically and allowing new ones to grow from the center. Green thumb Gardener occasionally links to product and/or services offered by vendors to assist you with all your gardening needs. The spinach plant is ready when the leaves are fully developed (depends on variety), but definitely before they bolt. If you want the spinach to regrow again, chop it at the base whilst leaving a bit of stem for it to regrow. Cut the older outer leaves first. Reduce the spread of disease spores by not working around wet plants. Malabar Spinach is also a plant that does well on a trellis as it vines. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. Enter your email below and we will send you a guide to help you SAVE money in your garden. Cut spinach leaf by leaf—cut the outer leaves first allowing the inner leaves to grow larger–or cut away the whole plant one inch (2.5 cm) above the soil. You might need a grow light in late fall or winter. The other option is to just pull up the plant and harvest all of the leaves if you don’t want any regrowth of the spinach plant. Lucky for you, spinach is a crop that you can harvest over and over again! Generally speaking, baby spinach is great eaten raw or sauteed gently because it is so tender. Ensure to start picking leaves on the outside of the plant, the inner leaves will then continue to grow and produce a … Picking spinach at the right time is subjective as your taste and needs may vary. Be careful not to cut into the growing point, otherwise you may damage the plant so that it will not regrow. Harvest them too late and they will be bitter. Planting spinach is easy and makes a great companion plant for cabbage, radishes, onions, peppers, and tomatoes. Check out this post here about planting spinach in a container for more information. How to Harvest Spinach. This type of spinach grows from the center so the new leaves are going to start out really small from the center of the plant. Privacy Policy | Disclaimer | Terms of Use SEO & Web Design by Evergreen Growth MarketingSitemap, 5 Free Garden HACKS That Save Me $512 Each Year, Enter Your Email Address Below & Get The FREE Garden Hacks Sent to Your Email. Just cut it off about 2 inches above the ground. You can cut the leaves when they have grown to around 4 inches (1 decimeter). Cut leaves 4 to 7 inches (10-17cm) long from plants that have 6 to 8 leaves. Here is what we will cover to help you: Check out our monumental guide here to growing spinach if you want more information. One way to do this is start harvesting the outer, older leaves first and then gradually working your way in to the center of the plant as those leaves mature. But as time goes on, your spinach will send up a long thin stock that comes from the center of the plant. You can harvest both of these types all throughout the summer. It is best to start harvesting leaves from the outer plant to encourage regrowth. Malabar takes to aggressive pruning and it will not harm the plant in any way. Growing up in rural Washington state, the job market was a somewhat lacking for those under the age of 16. Here is a fantastic book if you want some ideas on what to do with your veggies. You will look at the outside perimeter of the spinach plant and look for the bigger leaves that are ready to pick. Check your seed packet for information specific to your variety, but generally, the leaves will be 4- 6 inches. We at Green Thumb Gardener provide tips and guides for both for beginners and advanced gardeners out there. Typically, this type of spinach is used in salads and cooked in other dishes. You might not be certain how to harvest spinach. The leaves you have been harvesting may not taste sweet anymore, but begin to taste bitter. You can start harvesting spinach from every plant in 6 to 8 weeks. Spinach can be harvested in the "cut and the come again" method of harvesting leafy greens like lettuce. Take the outer/oldest leaves of each plant working around the center. As spinach leaves get larger, they can also get tougher, so by taking these off, you’re allowing the smaller leaves a chance to grow, and you’re avoiding mega large leaves that may lack in … By using our site, you agree to our. I plantit in wide rows and harvest with a bread knife. Another cool thing to do is plant spinach in containers. New versions of spinach are being developed all the time to improve flavor and extend their growing season. Spinach is best harvested after it has been transplanted in the ground for about six to eight weeks. We like to really seed more than most and find that our yields are much larger when we do this. You could have different varieties of spinach and pick them all at different times. You can begin harvesting whenever the leaves are large enough for your taste. Allow the remaining young leaves to grow on to maturity. Experiment what way works for you in determining the perfect time to harvest your spinach leaves. Basically, there are 3 different types of spinach plants that will be discussed – Savoy Spinach, Flat leaf or Smooth Spinach and other spinach-like plants. #spinach #harvestspinach #gardening, Typically, the spinach plant bolts when the temperatures warm up and the days get longer. Your plants have been growing for about 2 months and you may have been harvesting spinach leaves. As long as the plant hasn’t started continuously bolting, you can harvest … This plant also prefers a warmer climate, so it can be planted during the summertime. You will want to pick the spinach leaves when they are ready to eat at peak time. Avoid both of these diseases by planting resistant cultivars. Maybe you want some baby spinach leaves and not the crinkly matured ones. You can also just cut the whole plant off at the base. New growth emerges from the center of the spinach plant. This site is owned and operated by DTP Partners LLC. When harvesting, use a pair of scissors or garden shears to cut the spinach leaves back to within 2 inches of the ground. Grab FREE Garden Hacks that Save Me $512/year, When to Harvest Spinach – Picking Spinach at the Right time, The larger spinach leaves will slowly become the outside leaves as the spinach plant grows larger. We have found that cutting the entire plant and leaving about an inch above the plant does also grow back, but it takes longer. This is ideal for the savoy or more traditional spinach you see in grocery stores. Once your spinach plants bolt, the whole structure changes and it’s really time to pull them out of the garden. We know ads can be annoying, but they’re what allow us to make all of wikiHow available for free. Just don’t be afraid to try different picking times to see how the taste may vary. Harvest spinach. The leaves should then regrow for a … Cut and Come Again The spinach plant is a hardy, cool-weather crop. In many cases, spinach plants targeting fresh market are harvested in one cut (the whole plant is destroyed) about 40-55 days from seeding. The spinach prepares to 'flower' and reproduce rather than focusing on leaf production. Savoy If you want baby spinach leaves, you can harvest them when they are around 2 inches long. You can still harvest them if you are just seeing the stalk form but do it quickly. To create this article, volunteer authors worked to edit and improve it over time. As part of this Amazon Associates program, the Website will post customized links, provided by Amazon, to track the referrals to their website. Harvest spinach leaves too much and you might not get a regrowth. . Harvesting spinach at the right time really depends on timing. If you're lucky, you will have another batch of spinach to harvest. On a wide row the spinach will be ready to cut again by the time you have cut and eaten your way to end of the row. Want to Download a ​Garden Hack Guide​ for FREE. It is best to start harvesting leaves from the outer plant to encourage regrowth. All tip submissions are carefully reviewed before being published. This plant does take much longer than the New Zealand type, so you may not be able to harvest until 5-6 weeks. The larger spinach leaves will slowly become the outside leaves as the spinach plant grows larger. Heal your gut! Begin harvesting climbing spinach when the plant has grown more than 12 inches tall and produced leaves at least 3 inches long. Put the spinach in a greenhouse, on the window sill or outdoors. To harvest spinach, use your fingers or some small snips and harvest the larger, outer leaves of the spinach plant. The two types that we are talking about are – New Zealand Spinach and Malabar Spinach. This method is suitable for harvesting baby spinach leaves. Growing Greens : How to Pick Spinach Off the Plant - YouTube Spinach is an annual, so once it’s done producing leaves, you’ll want to pull up the stalks and toss them in the compost. This is the flower stalk of the spinach plant. There are 3 main varieties of spinach (Spinacia oleracea): savoy, semi-savoy, and flat or smooth. You can either cut or pull up the entire plant at this point. How do you know when spinach is ready to harvest? You now know when the best time to harvest your spinach is based on the different types of plants. You can let it continue to grow if you want to save seeds though. If you plan to cook spinach, or can it or freeze it, you'll get better yields if you wait until the leaves are larger - 4 … Green thumb Gardener is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and links to Amazon.com. This article has been viewed 26,450 times. This program utilizes cookies to track visits for the purposes of assigning commission on these sales. Time to harvest depends on whether we grow Spinach for Fresh or Processed Market. As a general rule, you can pick summer varieties from May to October and winter ones between October and April. Either way, the plant will keep producing new leaves as long as temperatures are cool. Thanks to all authors for creating a page that has been read 26,450 times. Best practices for picking the spinach leaves. Spinach leaves are great for cooking or eating raw as salad greens. Just snip leaves and tender new stems 6 to 8 inches (15-20 cm.) It is important to know when your spinach plants bolts because this is really the end point of when you can harvest spinach leaves. In fact, picking large amounts of the plant will only signal it to become even bushier. How to Harvest Malabar Spinach. Sow seeds 2.5cm (1in) deep in rows 30cm (12in) apart, or in a large container. It’s a great idea to harvest your spinach seeds every year. But keep an eye on your crop as spinach usually grows quicker in warmer weather. Spinach leaves can be harvested as soon as they are big enough to eat. That’s only if you are using spinach transplants that are planted in the ground. New Zealand Spinach is typically planted in the summer or more temperate times of the year. long with scissors or a knife. The large savoy spinach leaves are ready to pick at about 4 weeks from transplanting. To get the best out of your vegetable harvest, you must pick them at the right time and in the right way for a flavorsome and bountiful crop. Some of these may be affiliate links, meaning we earn a small commission if items are purchased. However, you may not know the best way to actually pick the spinach leaves. Continue to harvest weekly from the outside of the plant as new leaves are produced in the interior. This way you'll have yourself another harvest if the rest of the spinach leaves still need time to grow. This crop is cold hardy down to at least 28°F, so in some USDA Hardiness Zones, it can even be overwintered. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. How to harvest spinach. The process of forming this stalk redirects the energy of the plant leaf growth. How to Harvest Spinach – Taking the guesswork out of it, How to determine peak harvesting time for baby spinach, mature spinach and other types of spinach. Spinach can grow quickly in the home garden, and often gardeners can successively plant spinach to get a continual harvest. Bolting is when the stems and leaves shoot straight up, failing to form the larger leaves required for culinary purposes. Harvest spinach starting with the outermost leaves once leaves are large enough to eat. Cutting back to just above the base of the plant can encourage more leaves to grow for a second crop. Discover what works best for you. Height – 6 to 10 inches (20 to 30 cm) Exposure – part sun, shade in warm climates Soil – rich enough. At the first sign of bolting, you can harvest the entire crop. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/f\/f5\/Harvest-Spinach-Step-1.jpg\/v4-460px-Harvest-Spinach-Step-1.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/f\/f5\/Harvest-Spinach-Step-1.jpg\/aid7841099-v4-728px-Harvest-Spinach-Step-1.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"