How to Grow Spinach at Home

First of all, if you want to grow your own spinach, this blog post will show you how easy it is to grow this vegetable! To be honest, I thought growing spinach plants would be very complicated and difficult, but the truth is that they are very easy to grow! Let me show you how by sharing my experience.

When to Plant the Spinach Seeds

You can plant the seeds in early spring when the weather is still cold, but the plants will start to grow when the warm weather begins. When they start to grow, they need regular watering. I have not tried to plant the seeds in cold weather. I have only tried to grow spinach in late spring and in hot weather. The spinach seedlings will need fertile soil, regular watering, and warm temperatures to grow. This fast-growing plant will sprout in a week or two and is strong against pests. Using seed tray is a good idea, but you do not necessarily need them in order to grow spinach at home.

You can sow the spinach seeds whenever you want, but in the winter they lie dormant because of the cool weather. In early fall, when the soil temperature is warm enough, they will start to grow. The plants thrive in full sun during the summer heat. Therefore, place the plant in a warm spot in your vegetable garden where it can get a lot of sun.

You can sow the spinach seeds at regular intervals throughout the summer. Even in late summer, you can sow the seeds, but if it is too cold, the seeds will lie dormant until the next spring. It is fascinating how this works, but the seeds and plants follow rules that we cannot control. I believe we have a Creator who has made all this for us to enjoy. Don’t you think it is amazing?

When the Spinach Plants Start Blooming

If it gets too hot and dry, the whole plant will begin to bloom, which means you will have to harvest it. That happened to me this summer since the early summer days were very hot. Therefore, I harvested some of the plants that were blooming and sowed new spinach seeds in their place.

If you want to avoid the spinach plant blooming, you should take a break from growing spinach in the hottest month, which might be in July. This depends on where you live and what kind of summer you are facing. Just remember that if the plant starts to bloom, harvest the entire plant and eat the fresh spinach leaves. They are very tasty, for sure!

It is a bit discouraging to harvest young plants that you have newly sown, but my suggestion is to fertilize the soil again and sow new spinach seeds or something else that you want to grow in their place.

Pre-cultivation or Not?

My experience is that whenever I pre-cultivate a seed, the plants get leggy because they are searching for light. Artificial light might help, but I have not tried that when growing spinach. If you want to pre-cultivate spinach plants indoors and have the space to do that, you might not want to start too early. The plant grows very fast and needs a lot of sun early enough, which is a problem during the winter.

I love pre-cultivating, but I also love working smart! That way, I can work less and harvest more. My goal is always to find ways to make the work easier and more effective. Therefore, I do not necessarily follow the instructions on the seed packet. For me, following all the instructions makes the growing a lot more complicated. If I pre-cultivate, I make sure I can get the plants out in time.

If you prefer to sow spinach seeds directly in your garden, do it when the warmer weather has arrived and in well-drained soil. If you have the opportunity to use a raised bed, the soil gets warmer earlier, and the seeds will grow even faster. Of course, you can sow the seeds earlier in spring or during the winter months, but you will have to wait for the seeds to grow until warmer conditions.

I use garden beds because it looks more organized and is nice to work in a delimited area. Some of the garden beds are low, but I have ensured that the soil is fertilized and deep enough for growing vegetables that grow down in the soil, such as carrots. Try finding a sunny spot on your plot that will be a great place for your growing area, giving you the best results.

You can build a garden bed in many different ways, but my husband built a square garden bed which I divided into four parts. Straight lines and borders give me a sense of sequence and are also beautiful to look at. For me, it is important that my working area is pleasant and enjoyable to work in.

Sow Seeds at Regular Intervals

To harvest fresh leafy vegetables throughout the entire summer, it is a good idea to sow the seeds at regular intervals. That way, the baby spinach leaves will be available for the entire family to enjoy and eat throughout the summer. Even with later harvests, until the light frosts come, you will be able to harvest your spinach.

This summer, I have tried out a new method, and that is to sow the vegetables very close to each other. I water and fertilize the soil carefully, minimizing the weeds that are growing and focusing on a smaller area instead of a bigger one. In between the rows with carrots, beet roots, etc., I sow fast-growing vegetables, such as spinach, radishes, and peas. This is so much fun because I can easily replace plants that I harvest and grow much more food in a smaller amount of space.

How to Harvest Spinach

It is a delight to harvest homegrown spinach and nourish your body with leafy greens! I used to think about which leaves I should pick to harvest the plant—the smaller leaves, the outer leaves, mature leaves, etc. But the thing is, whenever you see a leaf that is edible, you can harvest it and eat it. Do not make it too complicated for yourself! You can either harvest the entire plant and cut it at the base of the plant, pick up the whole plant from the ground, or harvest one leaf at a time, even the smallest leaves.

How to Engage the Children

Depending on the age of the child, working together as a team or on a one-on-one basis will be a blessing to your child. Whatever you show and do with them will stick with them for their entire life. First, they will feel the warmth of your interest in them and your desire to teach them something new. Additionally, they will learn a method for working long-term and being self-sufficient. Show them how to sow, grow, and harvest. Also, teach them how you water the plants and what you do when the plant starts to bloom. The trials and errors that you encounter will be a learning opportunity for you and your children.

There will never be a “best time” to teach your child about gardening. Just start and see how it goes. What my children have enjoyed the most about growing and cultivation is the watering part. Water spinach together with your children and give them free rein to work independently. They will learn so much from you!

You can start teaching your child as early as one year old. My youngest is 22 months old and has helped me water the vegetables outside and also the tomato plants inside the greenhouse. Like the older kids, he loves playing with water. When he sees me watering the plants, he also wants to join. Of course, you will have to help and guide the little ones as they help you, otherwise, they might destroy the work you have done. But see it as an investment and a bonding opportunity. I especially love working one-on-one with my children whenever I can because it helps me focus on only one child and helps me bond with them in a special way that I would not otherwise experience.