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How to Grow Spinach: Planting, Growing & Harvesting Guide

spinach plant with leafy greens growing in the garden
Photo Credit
samotrebizan/Getty Images
Botanical Name
Spinacia oleracea
Plant Type
Vegetables
Sun Exposure
Full Sun
Soil pH
Neutral
Cummins

Planting, Growing, and Harvesting Spinach

Written By: Catherine Boeckmann Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Ready to grow your own Popeye-approved greens? Spinach is one of the most rewarding cool-season crops you can grow—nutrient-packed, fast-growing, and surprisingly cold-hardy. In this complete guide, we’ll walk you through everything from planting to harvesting, plus share some tips to keep your leafy bounty coming all season long. Let’s get growing!

About Spinach

Spinach has similar cool-season growing conditions and requirements as lettuce, but it is more versatile in both its nutrition and its ability to be eaten raw or cooked. It is higher in iron, calcium, and vitamins than most cultivated greens and is one of the best sources of vitamins A, B, and C.

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Planting

Spinach tolerates full sun to light shade; prepare soil about a week before planting by mixing in compost. Alternatively, prepare the soil in late summer or early fall, when spinach can also be sown where winters are mild.

When to Plant Spinach

  • Spinach requires 6 weeks of cool weather from seeding to harvest; this is generally spring or fall, though many gardeners have better luck in the fall.
  • Although seeds can be started indoors, it is not recommended, as seedlings are difficult to transplant.
  • In the fall, sow seeds when the soil is 70°F or cooler. See our fall planting calendar.
  • Many gardeners can grow spinach throughout the winter if they protect the young plants with a cold frame or thick mulch, then remove the protection when the soil temperature in your area reaches 40ºF in spring. Remove the mulch to harvest some spinach, then replace the mulch.
  • If planting in the early spring, sow seeds as soon as the ground warms to 40°F. (Cover the soil with black plastic to speed its warming.)
  • To distract leaf miners, sow spinach seeds and radish seeds in alternate rows. Leaf miner damage to radish tops does not affect their root growth.
  • Common spinach cannot grow in midsummer as it’s not cool enough. (For a summer harvest, try New Zealand Spinach or Malabar Spinach, two similar leafy greens that are more heat-tolerant.)

How to Plant Spinach

  • Sow seeds 1/2 inch deep every 2 inches and cover with 1/2 inch of soil.
  • Plant in rows 12 to 18 inches apart, or sprinkle over a wide row or bed.
  • Sow every couple of weeks during early spring for a continuous harvest.

Growing

  • Water spinach to keep soil constantly moist.
  • Use row covers to maintain cool soil and deter pests.
  • When seedlings sprout to about 2 inches, thin them to 3-4 inches apart. You can eat the thinnings.
  • Beyond thinning, no cultivation is necessary. Roots are shallow and easily damaged.
  • Water regularly and mulch to retain moisture.
  • When plants reach one-third of their growth, side-dress with a high-nitrogen fertilizer as needed. Nutrient deficiencies may appear as yellow or pale leaves, stunted or distorted growth, a purpling or bronzing of leaves, leaves dropping early, or other symptoms.
  • In early spring and late fall: Spinach can tolerate the cold; it can survive a frost and temps down to 15ºF (-9°C). (See local frost dates) Young spinach is more tender; cover if cold temps are in the forecast.

Types

There are four main types of spinach suited for spring and fall plantings.

  • Baby-leaf style spinach is tender, with small leaves. The variety ‘Baby’s Leaf’ is good for containers; ‘Catalina’ is heat-tolerant and resistant to downy mildew.
  • Savoy spinach has curly, crinkled, dark-green leaves, e.g. ‘Bloomsdale’. The ‘Winter Bloomsdale’ variety is a crinkled-leaf, fall variety, tolerant to mosaic viruses.
  • Semi-Savoy has slightly crinkled leaves and can be difficult to seed. ‘Melody’ is resistant to cucumber mosaic virus and downy mildew; mildew-resistant ‘Remington’ will grow in spring, summer, or fall; ‘Tyee’ can be planted in spring or fall, and is resistant to downy mildew.
  • Smooth- or flat-leaf (also called plain leaf) varieties have spade-shaped leaves. ‘Giant Nobel’ is a plain leaf variety and an heirloom that is slow to bolt; ‘Nordic IV’ is bolt-resistant.
  • Malabar Spinach (Basella alba), a vine, and New Zealand Spinach (Tetragonia tetragonioides), a perennial, are two leafy greens that resemble common spinach; both are heat-tolerant. Grow them in the summer when common spinach can’t take the heat.

Harvesting

  • Harvest a few outer leaves from each plant (so that inner leaves can develop) when leaves reach the desired size, or harvest the entire plant, cutting the stem at the base.
  • Don’t wait too long to harvest or wait for larger leaves. Bitterness will set in quickly after maturity. Be aware of day length and heat: Increasing daylight (about 14 hours or longer) and warmer seasonal temperatures can cause spinach to bolt (develop a large stalk with narrower leaves and buds/flowers/seeds), which makes the leaf taste bitter.
  • If spinach starts to bolt, pull the plant and use the leaves. Or try to slow the bolting: Pinch off the flower/seed heads, keep the soil moist, and provide shade.
Spinach plants growing in dirt
Harvesting spinach. 
Photo by Deyan Georgiev/Shutterstock.

How to Store Spinach

Fresh spinach leaves are good for up to a week. Too much moisture hastens their demise, so store fresh spinach unwashed and don’t wash until ready to use. Pat dry with a paper towel and put in a freezer bag with the towel to absorb moisture.

Given its short shelf life, spinach is perfect for freezing. Wash, trim off ends and yellowing leaves, blanch, and pack into freezer bags. See how to freeze spinach.

Gardening Products

Pests/Diseases

Spinach Pests and Diseases
Pest/DiseaseTypeSymptomsControl/Prevention
AphidsInsectMisshapen/yellow leaves; sticky “honeydew” (excrement); sooty, black moldGrow companion plants; knock off with water spray; apply insecticidal soap; put banana or orange peels around plants; wipe leaves with a 1 to 2 percent solution of dish soap (no additives) and water every 2 to 3 days for 2 weeks; add native plants to invite beneficial insects
Downy mildewFungusYellow, angular spots on upper leaf surfaces that turn brown; white/purple/gray cottony growth on leaf undersides only; distorted leaves; defoliationRemove plant debris; choose resistant varieties; ensure good air circulation; avoid overhead watering
Leaf minersInsectMeandering blisters in leaves caused by tunneling larvaeRemove infested leaves, weed diligently; use row covers; till soil early in season; rotate crops
Leaf spot (Cercospora)FungusMany small brown spots with red-purple halos on leaves that enlarge and turn gray; centers of spots eventually fall out, leaving the halosDestroy infected plants; weed; avoid overhead watering; ensure good air circulation; rotate crops
Spinach blight (mosaic virus)VirusVaries with plant, but may include stunting, mottled green/yellow/white pattern or ringed spots on leaves; distorted leaf growthDestroy infected plants; choose resistant varieties and certified virus-free seed; use row covers; disinfect tools; weed; control aphids; use mulch
White rustFungusChalk-white blisters mainly on leaf undersides; small, yellow-green spots or blisters, sometimes in circular arrangement, on upper leaf surfaces; possible distortion or galls; stems may also be infectedDestroy infected plants; choose resistant varieties; weed; destroy crop residue; rotate crops

Wit and Wisdom

  • Phenology, the study of signs, suggests planting spinach when crocuses are blooming.
  • Similarly, in areas where lilacs grow, old-time farmers say to plant spinach when lilacs are in first leaf.
  • Scatter spinach or lettuce seeds around emerging bulb foliage to make wise use of your garden space, and have a leafy green crop at the ready to cover the bare spots left by deadheaded spring flowers.

Recipes
Pasta Salad With Spinach and Artichokes
Spinach-Stuffed Tomatoes
Chicken Spinach Salad with Oranges, Dates, and Goat Cheese
Spinach Lasagna
Spinach and Cheese–Stuffed Chicken Breasts

Cooking Notes

  • A pinch of baking soda in the cooking water keeps the spinach greener.
  • Refresh wilted spinach by placing it in a bowl of ice water for a few minutes before using it.
  • Spinach boosts your brainpower, but it can hinder iron absorption. For better absorption of iron, eat spinach with orange slices.
  • Raw, young spinach is best in salads and smoothies; more mature spinach is excellent sautéed in heated olive oil.
  • Embrace your leafy greens! Learn more about the health benefits of going green!

Vegetables
About The Author
Catherine Boeckmann

Catherine Boeckmann

Executive Digital Editor and Master Gardener

Catherine Boeckmann is the Executive Digital Editor of Almanac.com, the website companion of The Old Farmer's Almanac. She covers gardening, plants, pest control, soil composition, seasonal and moon c...
Read More from Catherine Boeckmann

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Comments

<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 06/04/2014 - 01:54

Roy, I don't think this was spinach unless it was born in a fictional land for Popeye the Sailor! The height for most varieties is 10 to 12 inches.

 <span>Jen12345</span> Wed, 05/28/2014 - 16:04
I had bought 4 spinach seedlings from a grocery store in a 4-pack, which were each about as tall as my finger. I planted them in pots on my porch in early May. They are all healthy and fully green. However, almost every leaf on every plant is arrow-shaped (and has been since I got them) and stalks with buds on them are growing, and they got much taller within only a few days. A search online tells me that this means they are about to become bitter, seed, and die. Right now the leaves are green and not very bitter. My question is, if I bring the spinach pots indoors, can I still save the plants and get them to produce big, edible leaves over the summer? Or is it already too late to do that?
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Thu, 05/29/2014 - 09:36

Unfortunately, as I understand it, once a spinach plant starts to bolt, you can't reverse it. Spinach begins to bolt due to increasing daylight (about 14 hours or longer) as well as warmer temperatures. You can continue to harvest the leaves for now until they become too bitter; in late summer (after temperatures have cooled a bit) or early fall, you can plant some more for a fall crop.

 <span>Lynettem</span> Wed, 05/14/2014 - 19:11
I bought some spinach plants from my neighborhood nursery and they have taken off! the leaves arent as big as i was expecting, more the size of baby spinach. im just wondering when i can harvest and how to do that without destroying the entire plant, i want it to be around for a while. and also there are the seed things on the plant as well. what do i do with those? any and all help is greatly appreciated!
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Thu, 05/15/2014 - 14:16

In general, harvest the outer leaves to allow the inner ones to develop further. However, if the plant develops a large stalk with buds/flowers/seeds (called bolting), then you should pull the entire plant and use the leaves as you can. The leaves on the stalk will look narrower. When a spinach plant starts to bolt, it makes the leaves bitter. You can try to slow the bolting by pinching off the flower/seedheads as they appear, or keeping the plant moist and providing a little shade if the weather gets too warm.

 

Bolting can be caused by stress, warm temperatures, or daylight longer than about 14 hours (which happens in many areas of the US around May). Because of this, spinach is best planted in early spring or fall, when it is cooler and the days are shorter.

 <span>Haifa</span> Fri, 04/11/2014 - 19:14
how many times can i harvest the spinach??
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Wed, 06/11/2014 - 10:43

There is no limit to your harvest, Haifa. The plants might wilt in high heat and low moisture and that could signal the end. But pick leaves of any size (always leaving a few little ones on there), keep the plants well watered, and—depending on the variety—you should have many weeks of harvest. Depending on your first frost date (if indeed you live in an area that has frost), you might even squeeze in a second season. Check your frost date here (this is set for Kansas City; key in your location on the page): http://www.almanac.com/content/frost-chart-united-states/KS/Dodge%20City

Then, if you are likely to get a fall frost, count the days that back into summer based on the growth-to-maturity period of your spinach, and plant that second crop.

Enjoy!

 <span>Margaret Outlaw</span> Mon, 03/24/2014 - 11:30
Still chance of snow, in Hampton roads VA. Wsnt to plant spinach. Should I wait until later in Spril
<a title="View user profile." href="/author/editors">The Editors</a> Mon, 03/24/2014 - 17:33

Spinach is quite hearty. You can even spread seeds over frozen ground or snow cover in late winter and it will germinate as the soil thaws. We'd plant in early spring!

 <span>Simiso Dlamini</span> Tue, 03/11/2014 - 09:31
what happens to spinach if it is planted under shade?