why i plant spinach late, and other tasty tidbits

I have been known to plant spinach in my mittens, actually, as late as Thanksgiving, and again as early as March if the raised beds have drained out and the soil is workable.

Seeds sown from September until the ground freezes up, then topped with a floating row cover, will offer a real headstart of a harvest in the North in April, when much of the garden is barely ready for the first springtime seed. ‘Tyee’ is a particularly good variety for fall use because it overwinters well (particular if placed under a cover or coldframe).

The thing with spinach, whenever you grow it, is that it likes cooler weather—no warmer than, say, the mid-70s—and specifically requires cooler soil for good germination of the seeds. Hence its reputation as a spring or fall crop.

I either broadcast seeds in blocks or sow in 4-inch-wide bands about 1 inch apart (not less) within the bands, repeating with another band every two weeks from late March through the end of April or so, and again in late July and August. Rows of single seeds are also fine; whichever tactic, space your rows or bands a foot apart.

Baby leaves for salad can be clipped with scissors (after three weeks to a month from a spring sowing) or harvest the whole plant, roots and all, once the plants mature (in just under five weeks for some varieties, to about six for others).

FARTHER NORTH OF ME, THE MAINE ORGANIC Farmers and Gardeners Association recommends spinach sowings every two weeks from mid-April through September 1—a much more defiant approach in those hottest months that requires