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My first time growing spinach from seed and I have questions… (i.imgur.com)

submitted 1 year ago by scarabic to c/gardening

4 comments fedilink hide all child comments

I’ve bought spinach starts in the past and had a great time harvesting spinach all season - just a few leaves off the bunch each time and more would always grow.

But this year I sprouted seeds myself and I was disappointed when they didn’t grow into the nice bunches I had seen before. Just these leggy little plants. They have nice leaves but not many of them.

Should I be sprouting several seeds together? Or just plant a lot of these closer together? Is it an issue of variety? If anyone has thoughts I’d love to hear them. Thanks

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[–] Sustainabee 4 points 1 year ago

For spring planting, you need to start seeds really early so they're ready for the ground once you're past any hard freezes. I try to look for varieties that can handle some warmth so they don't bolt too early too. Alternatively, plant spinach substitutes that do well in cool & warm. I like to use the tops of my sweet potatoes & some lambs quarters once it gets too warm.

[–] JJROKCZ 2 points 1 year ago

Interested to see what responses you get.. unfortunately the spinach I planted got roasted by heatwave we had earlier this summer

[–] plz1 2 points 1 year ago

Sprout together and thin them out once they get some true leaves (spinach shaped ones). If you don't thin them, they'll still grow, but the roots will compete with each other. I usually get a high germination rate on the seeds I get from Johnny's Seeds, so I only put 1-2 per planting hole, and forget to thin them.

[–] thrawn21 1 points 1 year ago

Yeah, that's definitely it bolting. You could try slo-bolt varieties, or plant it in cooler areas of the garden, but it's pretty inevitable when growing in the summer.