This plant with the large sheets is a true super-food which moreover, pushes very well inside. Rich in folic acid, fiber, vitamins A and K, spinach is good for the heart and against memory loss due to age. It is also perfect for the development of fetuses and is therefore recommended for pregnant women.
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Where and how to grow spinach indoors?
Spinach likes moderate conditions, neither too hot nor too cold. Find a sunny spot that stays at room temperature like the rest of the room.
It needs lots of room to spread its roots; it needs a deep pot.
Soil preparation
Spinach likes when the soil is rich and drained. A drained soil is one that lets water run off through the clay balls at the bottom of the pot. A rich soil is one that is enriched with organic matter such as compost or fertilizer.
So put both soils in a hat, shake and you will get a rich, drained soil or look at the diagram below to make your own soil. To maintain it, add a little compost or fertilizer during cultivation to keep the soil nourished.
This is one of the advantages of growing off-ground: you can adapt your soil to your crops where in a real garden you adapt your crops to the soil.
When and how to plant spinach indoors?
Choose a 5 inches deep pot To grow potted spinach, choose a pot that is at least 8 to 9 inches deep. No need to use a very deep pot. The most important thing is that your pot is wide. So you can grow several plants in a planter, a large pot or a container of your choice, such as a wooden box or a crate from the market. Alternatively, you can use several smaller pots, putting one plant in each pot.
Spinach is one of the simplest vegetables to grow and it gives a lot. Moreover, it has the advantage that it can be sown quite early, between March and May for a summer harvest. You can also sow from August to September for a winter harvest.
Autumn sowing should be done from mid-August to the end of September, sometimes even mid-October. These seedlings have the best yield. Spring sowing should be done from March to the end of May, beginning of June. You will then be able to harvest your spinach until it goes to seed.
Spinach does not tolerate heat and can therefore be more difficult to grow if you are in the south. In this case, we advise you to cultivate the tetragone or the glacial ficoïde which resist better to the strong heats.
The spinach grows quickly and almost all the year. Only one precaution: to avoid him the overflow of sun, which can prove to be complicated in certain areas. – If you sow from mid-August to November for an autumn and winter harvest: put your spinach pots in a sunny spot.
This is the time of year when the days are shorter and the sun is less intense. – If you are sowing from February to mid-May for a spring and summer harvest: put your spinach pots in a place where the plants can receive some shade, especially in the afternoon. – For hot areas: put your pots in a place with little direct sun exposure.
How to take care of spinach indoors?
Spinach does not require too much maintenance. They hate dryness and excessive heat. So just make sure the soil does not dry out by watering regularly.
In the summer, you can mulch the soil to conserve as much moisture as possible. Since spinach needs rich, moist soil, we recommend using a flax or cocoa husk mulch. This will reduce the evaporation of water from your soil and the appearance of weeds.
When the first shoots reach 10 or 15cm, it is advisable to remove about every second plant. This way, the survivors will be able to develop completely!
When and what to harvest indoor spinach?
Spinach growing is easy and very fast. You will be able to harvest it 1 month and a half after sowing.
By picking a few leaves regularly, you will encourage the appearance of new shoots. If you pull up the whole plant, it will not grow back.
The spinach can be eaten fresh or cooked and the fact of cultivating it yourself gives it a very different flavor than the one we know it has .
If your spinach gives too much, pick it, coarsely cut the leaves and freeze it. This way, you won’t lose your crop.
Conservation of spinach
To preserve spinach, it is best to freeze it after washing and then coarsely cutting the leaves.
It can also be blanched by boiling it for 1 minute in water and then immersing it directly in cold water. This technique will preserve the green color of the spinach. Once blanched, it can be frozen.
Finally, you can simply keep it for a few days in the vegetable compartment of the refrigerator.
Summary
Originally from Iran, spinach has long been appreciated for its taste and excellent nutritional properties.
If spinach does contain iron, it is Popeye in particular who has made this reputation very exaggerated because the quantities are very limited compared to other foods.
Here is a vegetable that can be grown very well in a pot or planter on a terrace or balcony.
Apart from seeding, which is done like in the ground, it is important to water it regularly.
