Špinata greens are an excellent dietary staple, tasty and healthy, rich in minerals, proteins, vitamins.

When to sow špinatas

špinatas are quite hardy to low temperatures and tolerate the short daylight šbreeze of early spring well, so špinatas can easily be grown in the greenhouse from 15-30 March, and in the open ground outdoors from 15-30 April to September. After sowing, the šlight špinata greens can be harvested within 2-3 weeks.

Pinatas will also grow well on a windowsill in an apartment without requiring special conditions. But normally, špinata seeds are sown immediately in the garden or in a šgreenhouse. Let's decide whether it is worth growing špinatas as seedlings. The &scaron plant can withstand short-term frost down to -5-7°C. It is because of its resistance to frost that &scaron pinatas are rarely grown as seedlings and are planted directly in open ground and in &scaron greenhouses. The soil only needs to be brought to +5°C at a depth of 10 cm. A temperature of 15-18º C in the house is suitable for good growth and development of the špinata.

Išt is not a good idea to grow špinata seedlings on a windowsill, especially as their šacnes do not tolerate transplanting well. Home propagation is only useful in the event of a very prolonged winter or a very late spring.

Since špinatas develop much better in the shortened daylight hours, producing more leaves, the second half of March (in the šgreenhouse) is ideal for sowing. Longer &scaron days result in less leaf growth and the formation of unwanted flowers.

Soil preparation for sowing pinatas

The rotation advises sowing špinatas after cabbage (early and cauliflower), cucumbers, beetroot, radishes and potatoes. It is not advisable to sow špinatas after carrots and late cabbage varieties.

Špinatas like irrigation in sandy soils and grow best in loose, fertile, humusy, neutral (5-6 pH) loamy soil, but not acidic.

The bed for špinatas should preferably be prepared in autumn if you want to sow them in spring, or at the end of August if you want to plant špinatas in winter. Dig the soil to a depth of 20 cm and add 4-5 kg of humus, 200-300 g of ash and mineral fertiliser (30 g of superphosphate, 10 g of urea, 15 g of potassium chloride per square metre).

For acid soils, liming is applied 5-7 days before fertilisation. The soil is then dug down to 20 cm and sprinkled with lime or dolomite flour (200–300 g/m²).

It is advisable to reinforce the bed with boards, as the špinatas need abundant and frequent irrigation and this measure will help to prevent the soil from being washed away.

Špinata seed preparation for sowing

Unlike other plants, špinatas do not require a thorough preparation for sowing, but it is necessary to take into account that their seeds have a dense cover through which it is difficult for the seedlings to penetrate on their own.

Išthinšthe seeds and select those that are defective and the rest according to size.

The next step is to soak them in šboiling šlukewarm water. Place a piece of cotton cloth on the bottom of the pan, place the pinata seeds on top and add enough water to cover them. Place the dish with the seeds in a dark place for 1 day, changing the water every 4 hours and making sure that the seeds are always in the water (you can cover them with another damp cloth). After one day, remove the seeds and peel them.

Disinfection. Place the pinata seeds in a bright pink solution of potassium permanganate (1 g : 200 ml water) for 10 minutes. After the treatment, rinse with copper water and drain.

Sowing pinata seeds in the greenhouse

Špinata sowing depth – 2-4 cm.

Seed spacing:

• for varieties with lower leaf spacing - 5-7 cm. This spacing makes it unnecessary to frequently thin špinata seedlings later on.

• for varieties with larger leaf spacing - 20 cm.

Row spacing when sowing seeds:

• for varieties with smaller leaf spacing - 20 cm;

• for varieties with larger leaf spacing - 45 cm.

In the bed, make the furrows 2-4 cm deep according to the above scheme and water them well. The seeds can then be sown at the recommended spacing for the chosen variety.

After sowing, cover the crop with soil and compact it slightly. Water the crop. Cover the bed with a plastic sheet to speed up seedling growth. Under good conditions, špinata seedlings emerge in 10 to 14 days.

Špinata care

When the seedlings have emerged, it is possible to remove the film and shake the soil between the rows, while at the same time removing the weeds.

Watering is essential for growing špinatas. If there is a lack of irrigation, špinatas šdevelop flowers and become širurkštough, losing much of their beneficial nutritional properties.

Once the špinatas have produced leaves, it's time to protect them from pests. Between the rows it is worth sprinkling tobacco dust, wood ash, mustard powder or red pepper.

When 2 true leaves appear špinatas can be thinned, leaving 10 cm of space between specimens.