Spinach beet "Rhubarb Chard" (swisschard)

Rhubarb Chard.
Easy to grow, harvested in 60 days after sowing. In mild winters the roots can be covered and overwinter in the soil.
They are used for soups, steamed, are added to salads, leaf stems can be canned.
1,0 g = 45-55 seeds.

A very valuable vegetable crop. Chard is one of the relatively little-known vegetables in our country, although it deserves great distribution. Plants are similar to table beets, but leaves and petioles are used for food. Curly leaf blades are used like spinach (leaf chard), and thick, juicy cuttings are cooked like petiole celery or asparagus (stalked chard).
Chard is a biennial, belongs to the haze family. It does not hibernate in the northern regions, it is cultivated as an annual plant. This culture can grow in almost any area. Tolerates cold well. Chard is recommended to be grown on medium-heavy soils rich in nutrients (especially nitrogen). Seeds are sown in late April - early May to a depth of 3-4 cm. Seeding rate 0.5-0.8 g/m2. Row spacing - 50 cm.
In the second half of May, thinning is carried out, leaving 30 cm between plants. During the growing season, the soil around the plants is loosened, and watered in dry weather. Leaf chard is harvested from the beginning of summer while it is still young. Up to 5 cuts are carried out per season, leaving young leaves. In petiole chard, petioles and veins break off a little later, from mid-August to autumn. Before the arrival of severe frosts, plants are pulled out with roots and placed in deep greenhouses or transferred in boxes to the cellar. The newly developing leaves can then be harvested until winter.
Chard is a very valuable vegetable crop. The leaves and petioles contain sugar, protein, carotene, vitamins C1, B1, B2, P, P1, PP. Chard is also rich in calcium, phosphorus and iron salts. The plant has a diuretic, mild laxative, antiscorbutic and analgesic effect. Chard is very useful in sclerosis. Eating chard juice lowers blood pressure. In addition, in folk medicine, chard juice, mixed in half with honey, is used for colds.

Eng.: Spinach Beet. Suom.: Lehtimangoldi. Sven.: Mangold.