Trialling 4 chards as spinach substitute - Page 2

greenthumbomaha · January 12, 2018

My seed may have been old then. I only got a small percentage and the plants croak when they went outside. Time for another try in about a month.

- Lisa

Labradors2 · January 18, 2018

I'm contemplating growing Malabar spinach, but I wonder how it grows when planted outside in the north. I just read some reviews at Baker Creek where some people waited all season to harvest very few leaves..... Of course I would start it inside to give it a head start, but I wonder.......

Linda

KarenO · January 18, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by Labradors2

I'm contemplating growing Malabar spinach, but I wonder how it grows when planted outside in the north. I just read some reviews at Baker Creek where some people waited all season to harvest very few leaves..... Of course I would start it inside to give it a head start, but I wonder.......

Linda

It did well in my greenhouse in hanging baskets but it did take a long time. It likes heat. To grow it outside I would grow it in a hot sheltered spot maybe against a wall. It is good, the leaves are thicker but it does taste just like garden spinach. Blooms are unusual too.
KarenO

Labradors2 · January 18, 2018

Thanks Karen.

I have just the spot for it against the south facing stone wall of the house beside the hose pipe. (I understand that it likes moisture too!)

Linda

KarenO · January 18, 2018

Yes, it’s pretty tropical I think. Fun to try, should like your wall in a trellis. I’ll look for a pic, not sure if I have one but I think I do somewhere on northern gardener
Karen

nancyruhl · January 18, 2018

I get lots in my Detroit area garden and I didn't have too wait very long. Later in the season, it went into seed production mode, so less new leaf growth. If I had trimmed off some of those pretty flowers, that might not have happened as much.

jmsieglaff · January 18, 2018

My deck is pretty hot and bakes in the sun all day long. Do you think it would do well in a container? How good of a climber is it?

bower · January 21, 2018

Has anyone tried oriental spinach? I just stumbled on these:
http://www.evergreenseeds.com/orspin.html

Looks like it could be the answer to bolt resistance in a summer spinach?

Zeedman · January 21, 2018

Quote:

Originally Posted by bower

Looks like it could be the answer to bolt resistance in a summer spinach?

Probably not. From the description in the link: "...very hardy vegetable. This vegetable grows very well in mild climates." This seems to suggest the same cool-weather preferences as regular spinach.

greenthumbomaha · January 22, 2018

How attractive to squirrels is Malabar spinach? I can put a small hex ring around the bottom to protect from rabbits, but a vine would be a challenge.

- Lisa

maxjohnson · January 22, 2018

I still think malabar spinach isn't neutral enough to be close to spinach. I haven't seen squirrels eating any of my malabar spinach and don't think they would go for that stuff. In any case it grows so well so there would be plenty to share. Though even now in Florida the growth rate is somewhat reduced in the cooler months. You do want to prune the main stem for better production.

I need to try my hands at spinach because I bought bunches of huge spinach from the farmer market today, it turns out to be Bloomsdale in greenhouses, it amazed me if this size is possible down here in zone 10B. Too bad the cold spell passed just recently.

Quote:

Originally Posted by jmsieglaff

My deck is pretty hot and bakes in the sun all day long. Do you think it would do well in a container? How good of a climber is it?

It will do well in container and will wrap around anything without help. It does like high nitrogen soil and with good weather the leaves can get huge, as I have seen it grown in not fully rotten horse manure. Even though it does need the heat, it likes a lot of water too.

--

Also there is longevity and okinawa spinach, they have a different kind of taste not for everyone though.

bjbebs · January 22, 2018

All of my spinach and chard are grown in ground in soils which are enriched with horse manure in varying stages of decay. I mainly grow Space and Melody spinach and yellow stemmed chard. It got into the 50's today with rain and the snow cover is gone. I picked over a pound of spinach that has been under snow for most of the last month. Not as good as a May picking but close.

Speaking of Bloomsdale, a friend grows large quantities every year. I bring home many pounds. Almost all go into spinach pies. Nothing cooks beter than Bloomsdale.

jmsieglaff · February 7, 2018

My indoor dry run by the patio door is underway. Seeing if we like one better than the others and may plant more that outdoors in the spring.

Andrey_BY · February 8, 2018

Mustard greens or an early lettuce are good substitutes of spinach.
Russians also like early nettle leaves for the same purpose as spinach.

And don't forget that both spinach and radish are full of uriс acid which is responsible for a gout decease.

PotGarden · February 15, 2018

Malabar spinach is the closest taste to spinach, for me at least. It's tropical, totally opposite of spinach. Indoors it's a beautiful ornamental, also. It's an incredibly easy plant, as long as it's really warm. And while it likes a lot of water, I've found it to be extremely drought tolerant, more so than almost anything I've grown. Drought will speed up flowering, though. If you don't constantly pick it once it gets going, it will grow like crazy, bloom its beautiful flowers and reseed prolifically. You'll never have to buy the seeds again if you save some!

February 8, 2018	#29
Andrey_BY Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Minsk, Belarus, Eastern Europe (Zone 4a) Posts: 2,278	Mustard greens or an early lettuce are good substitutes of spinach. Russians also like early nettle leaves for the same purpose as spinach. And don't forget that both spinach and radish are full of uriс acid which is responsible for a gout decease. __________________ 1 kg=2.2 lb , 1 m=39,37 in , 1 oz=28.35 g , 1 ft=30.48 cm , 1 lb= 0,4536 kg , 1 in=2.54 cm , 1 l = 0.26 gallon , 0 C=32 F Andrey a.k.a. TOMATODOR Last edited by Andrey_BY; February 9, 2018 at 01:27 AM.

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January 12, 2018	#16
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	My seed may have been old then. I only got a small percentage and the plants croak when they went outside. Time for another try in about a month. - Lisa

January 18, 2018	#17
Labradors2 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Ontario Posts: 3,896	I'm contemplating growing Malabar spinach, but I wonder how it grows when planted outside in the north. I just read some reviews at Baker Creek where some people waited all season to harvest very few leaves..... Of course I would start it inside to give it a head start, but I wonder....... Linda

January 18, 2018	#20
KarenO Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Vancouver Island Posts: 5,931	Yes, it’s pretty tropical I think. Fun to try, should like your wall in a trellis. I’ll look for a pic, not sure if I have one but I think I do somewhere on northern gardener Karen

January 18, 2018	#21
nancyruhl Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Apr 2010 Location: Metro Detroit, Michigan Posts: 1,051	I get lots in my Detroit area garden and I didn't have too wait very long. Later in the season, it went into seed production mode, so less new leaf growth. If I had trimmed off some of those pretty flowers, that might not have happened as much.

January 18, 2018	#22
jmsieglaff Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Southern WI Posts: 2,742	My deck is pretty hot and bakes in the sun all day long. Do you think it would do well in a container? How good of a climber is it?

January 21, 2018	#23
bower Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2012 Location: Newfoundland, Canada Posts: 6,794	Has anyone tried oriental spinach? I just stumbled on these: http://www.evergreenseeds.com/orspin.html Looks like it could be the answer to bolt resistance in a summer spinach?

January 22, 2018	#25
greenthumbomaha Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Nov 2011 Location: Omaha Zone 5 Posts: 2,514	How attractive to squirrels is Malabar spinach? I can put a small hex ring around the bottom to protect from rabbits, but a vine would be a challenge. - Lisa

January 22, 2018	#27
bjbebs Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2014 Location: illinois Posts: 281	All of my spinach and chard are grown in ground in soils which are enriched with horse manure in varying stages of decay. I mainly grow Space and Melody spinach and yellow stemmed chard. It got into the 50's today with rain and the snow cover is gone. I picked over a pound of spinach that has been under snow for most of the last month. Not as good as a May picking but close. Speaking of Bloomsdale, a friend grows large quantities every year. I bring home many pounds. Almost all go into spinach pies. Nothing cooks beter than Bloomsdale.

February 15, 2018	#30
PotGarden Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2018 Location: NY Posts: 59	Malabar spinach is the closest taste to spinach, for me at least. It's tropical, totally opposite of spinach. Indoors it's a beautiful ornamental, also. It's an incredibly easy plant, as long as it's really warm. And while it likes a lot of water, I've found it to be extremely drought tolerant, more so than almost anything I've grown. Drought will speed up flowering, though. If you don't constantly pick it once it gets going, it will grow like crazy, bloom its beautiful flowers and reseed prolifically. You'll never have to buy the seeds again if you save some!