Spinach "Winterriesen"

Spinach "Winterriesen" - Spinacea oleracea.
A mid-early, high-yielding variety.
Sow in early spring or fall at a depth of up to 3 cm. Grows well even in low temperatures. Planting pattern: 10 x 20 cm.
Yields are low when sown during the intense heat of midsummer.
1.0 g = 70-100 seeds.

* Spinach - Spinacea oleracea L.
Spinach is far from the most popular plant in our garden beds. Meanwhile, the dismissive attitude towards this vegetable is absolutely unfair...
Firstly, because in terms of protein content, spinach leaves are second only to green peas and young bean pods, which means dishes made from it are quite nutritious and hearty.
Secondly, in the lists of the most useful products compiled by nutritionists from different countries, spinach ranks first among vegetables. It is simply unmatched in the composition and quantity of vitamins, trace elements, and biologically active substances it contains.
Spinach is one of the best sources of carotene (second only to carrots); its green leaves are rich in vitamins C, B1, B2, as well as P, PP, K, E, which are rarely found in other vegetables. In addition, they contain folic and pantothenic acids, salts of potassium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, and iodine. Thanks to such a rich and diverse composition of beneficial substances, this vegetable, experts say, does not just saturate the body, but simultaneously removes toxins, strengthens blood vessels, prevents tumour diseases and anaemia, and has a beneficial effect on teeth and gums. Nutritionists particularly insistently recommend it to pregnant women, children, and people with weakened health.
But there is one feature that prevents spinach from becoming popular: its juicy leaves do not retain their marketable appearance for long - they quickly wilt. However, owners of private gardens and vegetable patches can provide themselves with it from early spring to late autumn.
Boy or Girl?
Spinach (Spinacea oleracea L.) is an early-maturing annual unpretentious plant of the Amaranthaceae family (formerly Chenopodiaceae). It is usually a small rosette (15 - 20 cm in height and 15 cm in width) consisting of 6 - 10 basal leaves. They can look quite varied; many varieties with corrugated and almost smooth, pointed and rounded leaves have now been bred.
Spinach is a dioecious plant, which means there are male and female specimens. They can be distinguished by their flower stalks - they form earlier on male plants. Moreover, male specimens have significantly fewer leaves and are not as valuable in their composition as female ones. Therefore, when thinning a spinach bed, it is worth getting rid of the male plants first.
When to sow?
Another remarkable property of spinach is its cold resistance. Although it is a southern plant, its seedlings can withstand frosts down to -8°C. And rosettes of plants sown in autumn can overwinter under snow (in Estonia - with slight cover).
Therefore, in garden crop rotation, spinach is grown both as a predecessor for heat-loving crops, as a repeat crop after greens, and as an intercropping plant - this vegetable is compatible with almost all garden plants. It can be sown both in greenhouses and in open ground. And this can be done practically anytime the ground is not covered with snow. From March to July - for using mature leaves, until mid-August - for using young ones.
Staggered sowings are carried out at intervals of 20 - 30 days. For winter crops, choose varieties resistant to bolting. Their seeds are sown from the end of July to mid-August so that the plants form a small leaf rosette before the frost. In the temperate climate zone, they need to be covered for the winter. Spinach seeds are sown before winter in November, before the onset of stable frosts. The harvest from under-winter sowing ripens a week earlier than from early spring sowing.
Preparing the bed.
Spinach prefers fertile, organic-rich, not too acidic soils with good water-holding capacity. Sufficient moisture is very important for fast-growing spinach. A good predecessor for spinach is potatoes, a crop for which the soil is well fertilized and processed multiple times.
It is better to grow spinach on low ridges. Before sowing, the soil is well loosened and a complete mineral fertilizer is applied to it (for garden soils in the temperate climate zone - 60 g of nitrophoska or "Kemira Universal" per 1 m²).
How to sow?
Shallow, 1.5 - 2.0 cm furrows are made on the surface of the bed. Their bottom is moistened, then the seeds are sown with a distance in the row of 7 - 10 cm. Row spacing is 30 - 35 cm. If young plants are intended for use, the planting scheme is 5 - 7 cm by 25 - 30 cm. The seeds are incorporated into the soil with the back of a rake, and the surface is slightly compacted. Shoots appear after 14 - 21 days, depending on weather conditions.
How to care for it?
When the seedlings grow (the second true leaf appears), the sowings are thinned out, as two sprouts emerge from one seed-glomerule in spinach.
Thickening of sowings is undesirable - poor aeration increases the risk of mildew infection. The distance in the row between plants should be about 15 cm. It is very important to act carefully, trying not to damage the remaining plants. After thinning is complete, the spinach is watered. The soil needs to be regularly loosened throughout the entire growing season.
In dry weather, the plants need watering to form a good harvest and a decent appearance. Usually, 2 - 3 times a week with 3 l of water per linear meter of the row is sufficient. Normal soil moisture helps to avoid plant bolting.
Harvesting.
Spring-sown spinach is ready for harvest 8 - 10 weeks after the emergence of seedlings, and summer-sown spinach - after 10 - 12 weeks. It is very important to harvest on time: if the plants overstay, the leaves become coarse and tasteless. Rosettes are cut below the first leaf or pulled out by the root. But you can also just pick the leaves as needed. It is best to harvest spinach in the morning, but not immediately after watering or rain, as the leaves are very fragile and break easily at this time. They can also only be transported and stored dry.
Spinach is stored on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator in a plastic bag for no more than two days. For winter preservation, it can be frozen - in a frozen state, it retains its beneficial properties well.
Pests and diseases.
Aphids gladly settle on the juicy leaves of spinach, and mining fly larvae also eat them. Slugs and snails also love this vegetable. Late summer, downy mildew may appear on the leaves, especially if the plantings are dense. Plants are often affected by various leaf spots.
It is quite difficult to control these pests and diseases, as leafy vegetables are not recommended to be sprayed with pesticides. Therefore, for prevention, it is important to strictly follow agricultural techniques and timely remove plant residues. To avoid powdery mildew, it is better to choose resistant varieties.