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Spinach

Spinacia oleracea

A fast, cool-season leafy green with tender, dark leaves. True spinach bolts quickly in heat and long days, so in Florida it's a winter crop only. Heat-loving substitutes like Malabar spinach are different plants.

Growing facts

Scientific name
Spinacia oleracea
Origin
Central and Southwest Asia (Persia)
Plant size
6–12 in rosettes
Growth rate
Fast
Sun
Full sun in cool weather; part shade as it warms
Soil
Rich, moist, well-drained soil
Soil pH
6.5–7.5
Pollination
Not needed for leaves
Cold hardiness
Very cold-hardy, often into the teens °F; bolts in heat and long days
USDA zones
Cool-season annual in all zones
Harvest
35–50 days from seed
When to plant (zones 9–11)
Oct–Jan
When to plant (zones 5–8)
Mar, Apr, Sep
Water
About every 2 days once established, without rain; more in heat, in pots and while young
Feeding
About every 21 days
Taste
Mild and earthy when young; slightly metallic when cooked
Nutrition
Very high in vitamins K and A, with folate and iron (though much of the iron and calcium is bound by oxalates)

Is spinach safe to eat? Edible and toxic parts

What you can eat

  • Leaves, raw or cooked

Toxic parts and cautions

  • Take care: Very high in vitamin K. People on warfarin don't need to avoid it, but should eat about the same amount from week to week and tell their doctor about big changes.
  • Take care: High in oxalates. People prone to calcium-oxalate kidney stones should limit spinach; cooking and draining lowers oxalates somewhat.
  • Good to know: Home-prepared spinach can be high in nitrates. Pediatric guidance is to avoid it for babies under about 3 months.
  • Good to know: Greens eaten raw are a common source of food poisoning. Wash well, keep pets and fresh manure out of the bed, and use only fully composted manure.

Pets: Small amounts are fine for dogs; the oxalates make it a poor choice for pets with kidney or bladder stone problems.

How to eat and enjoy spinach

  • Raw in salads
  • Sautéed with garlic, or creamed
  • Saag (India) and spanakopita (Greece)
  • Stirred into soups, eggs and pasta

When it's ripe

Pick outer leaves once they're 3–4 in, or cut the whole plant an inch above the soil. Harvest everything when it starts to bolt.

Storing it

Refrigerate unwashed in a bag with a paper towel for 3–5 days. Blanch and freeze for longer.

Spinach varieties (5)

  • Bloomsdale Long Standing · also Bloomsdale

    A classic heirloom with deeply crinkled (savoyed) dark-green leaves.

    Slower to bolt than most open-pollinated types.

  • Giant Noble

    An heirloom with very large, smooth leaves.

    Good for cooking.

  • Melody

    A semi-savoyed hybrid with large, dark leaves.

    Productive and disease-resistant.

  • Space

    A smooth-leaf hybrid that's easy to wash.

    Slow to bolt; disease-resistant.

  • Tyee

    A semi-savoyed hybrid with dark-green leaves.

    Very slow to bolt; good for spring and fall.

Pests and diseases to watch for

  • Scale insects

    Small bumps, waxy or shell-like, on stems and leaf veins; sticky honeydew and black sooty mold below.

    What to do: Scrub small colonies off with a soft brush.

  • Mealybugs

    White cottony clusters in leaf joints, under leaves and on fruit stems; honeydew and sooty mold.

    What to do: Blast off with a strong spray of water.

  • Aphids

    Clusters of tiny soft insects on new shoots; leaves curl and get sticky.

    What to do: Spray off with water.

  • Sooty mold

    Black, papery film on leaves and fruit that wipes off; it grows on honeydew.

    What to do: Control the insects making honeydew; the mold then weathers away.

  • Spider mites

    Fine pale speckling on leaves, dusty undersides and fine webbing; leaves bronze and drop.

    What to do: Hose the undersides of leaves.

Growing spinaches? Let Gardyn keep track.

Gardyn tells you when your spinach needs water based on your local weather, reminds you to feed and prune in season, and keeps every harvest and photo.

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General guidance, not medical or veterinary advice. Poison Control (US): 1-800-222-1222. ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435.