How Do You Harvest Spinach

 

How Do You Harvest Spinach

Spinach

Botanical Name : Spinacia oleracea

Family  : Chenopodiaceae 

Chromosome No. : 2n = 18, 24 

                                                                                     

Foreign spinach has a special place among leafy vegetables. It is cultivated especially in America, Canada and Europe. It has not become very popular in India. The shape of its leaves is completely different from the Indian spinach. It is a very popular vegetable crop abroad. In India, it is grown especially in the hills of South India. Apart from South India, it is being cultivated in some areas of Central and North India. Vegetable is made from its leaves. Potato, onion, brinjal etc. are added to the vegetable of foreign spinach or it is made alone. Sauce and pakodas are also made from its leaves.

History and Origin – The birthplace of foreign spinach is believed to be South-West Asia. People of Mars caste took it to Spain and from there foreign spinach reached other countries of the world. According to some people, smooth seeded varieties of foreign spinach were grown in China around the seventh century.

Utility - Green leafy vegetables are made from the leaves of spinach. Pakodas are also made from its leaves.

 How Do I Plant Spinach

Nutritive Value - Calcium, protein and vitamin A are found in abundance in spinach. Its nutritional value is shown in the table-

                                           (Nutrition Value of Spinach per 100 gm)    

Moisture                           : 92.1 g Fat                                    : 0.7 g Fiber                                 : 0.6 g Protein                             : 2.0 g Minerals                          : 1.7 g Other Carbohydrates    : 2.9 g Magnesium                     : 84.0 mg, Sodium                           : 58.50 mg Phosphorus                   : 21.00 mg Copper                          : 0.01 mg Chlorine                       :54.00mg Calcium                        :73.00mg Oxalic Acid                  : 658.00 mg Iron                              : 10.09 mg Potassium                   : 206.00 mg Sulfur                         : 30.00 mg Riboflavin                  : 0.07 mg Vitamin C                  : 23.00 mg Vitamins  'A'             : 9300.00 IU Calories                     : 26.00

  How To Harvest Spinach

Climate - Spinach is a cold season crop and it has a special ability to tolerate frost. Due to high temperature, the growth and development of plants stop due to which there is a huge reduction in the yield. Therefore, it is cultivated as a winter crop. To get its abundant yield, short light period days are good. In more humid conditions, its leaves become more juicy and soft.

Soil - Spinach can be grown on different types of soils, but loamy fertile soil with proper drainage is considered the best for its successful production. The pH value of the soil should be between 6 to 7. Acidic and highly alkaline soils are considered to be obstacles in its successful production.

Foreign spinach is divided into 4 parts on the basis of sex - 

1. Extreme males

2. Vegetative males

3. Female flowers

4. Male and female flowers on the same plant (Monoccious plants)

Varieties of foreign spinach are divided into two parts -

1. Savoy leaved types

2. Smooth leaved types

Indian Agricultural Research Institute, New Delhi recommends the following two varieties of foreign spinach -

(I) Virginia Savoy - Its plants are straight, healthy and green in color. Its leaves are thick, broad and rounded from the front. Its seeds are prickly seeded. It is a suitable variety for hilly areas. It gives 100-125 quintals of yield per hectare. (2) Early Smooth Leaf – This is an early variety. The leaves are thin, smooth and pointed, which are of yellowish green color. About 30 days after sowing, the leaves are ready for harvesting. The seeds of this variety are round.

Desi varieties – Banerjee Giant, Banarasi (Katvi Palak), Khara Lucknow and Khara Palak are the main ones.

Land Preparation – First plough the field with a soil turning plough. After that plough twice with a cultivator or harrow. After every ploughing, apply a leveler.

     How Long Does It Take For Spinach To Grow

Manure and Fertilizers - To get high yield of spinach, it is very important to use manure and fertilizers in right quantity and at right time after soil testing. If testing is not possible, then manure and fertilizers must be applied per hectare.

Farm Yard Manure  -  25-30 tons

Nitrogen 80  -  100 kg

Phosphorus  -  60 kg

Potash  -  60 kg

Cow dung manure should be applied to the field before the first ploughing. A mixture of full phosphorus and full potash and one-fourth of nitrogen should be applied to the soil at the time of final ploughing. The remaining amount of nitrogen should be given at the rate of 20-25 kg as top dressing after each harvesting. Irrigation should be done on the second day of applying fertilizer so that the roots of the plants can easily absorb the nutrients and the crop gets ready for harvesting soon. Propagation - Propagation of foreign spinach is done through seeds.

Seed rate - 35-40 kg of seed per hectare is sufficient.

Seed treatment - To protect the crop from fungal diseases, it is very important to treat the seeds with fungicide before sowing. Thiram or Agrocin GN should be treated at the rate of 3 grams of medicine / kilogram.

Sowing time - Sowing of foreign spinach depends on where it is being grown. In the plains, it is sown in November-December and in the mountainous areas above sea level, it is sown in March.

    How Long Does It Take Spinach To Grow

Method of sowing - Sowing of foreign spinach is done in two ways, i.e., sprinkling and in rows, but to get more yield of foreign spinach, it should always be sown in rows. Keep the distance between rows and plants 22-25 cm and 20 cm respectively. Do not sow the seeds more than 3-4 cm deep. Immediately after sowing, use a machine called 'hand roller'. By doing this, germination takes place properly.

About 50 percent of the plants have male flowers which do not grow properly, so they should be uprooted.

Irrigation

For proper germination of seeds, it is very important to have sufficient moisture in the soil. Therefore, ploughing is recommended for this. Second irrigation should be done after sowing. Generally, in summer, irrigation should be done at an interval of 4-5 days, whereas in winter, irrigation should be done at an interval of 8-10 days.

  How To Grow Water Spinach

Crop Protection

Weed Control - To control the weeds growing with the spinach, weeding should be done as per the need.

The dense plants should be uprooted and thinned so that the plants can develop and grow well and more yield can be obtained.

Pest Control

Aphid – This is a small insect which lives in a group and damages the plant. This insect causes damage by sucking the juice of the leaves and other soft parts of the plant.

To control this insect, an insecticide called 'Nicotine Sulphate' should be sprayed at the time of infestation.

    How To Plant Water Spinach

Disease Control

Damping off – This is a disease caused by fungus. Due to this disease, the plants wither and fall. Hence, the yield is adversely affected.

To prevent this disease, the seeds should be treated with Thiram or Aprosin GN and then sown.

Cercospora Leaf Spot – This is also a fungal disease, which causes round spots on the leaves. Due to which the food production function of the leaves is adversely affected.

To control this disease, a medicine called 'Phytolan' should be sprayed.

Harvesting – The leaves should be harvested when the leaves become 15-30 cm long. The leaves should be harvested in a soft and juicy state. In this way, 5-6 cuttings can be taken.

Yield – The yield of spinach depends on many things, among which the fertility of the land, the variety grown, the method of growing and crop care are the main ones. Usually 80-100 quintals of yield is obtained per hectare.

How Do You Harvest Spinach

Seed Production – The seeds of Virginia Savoy variety of spinach are produced in the mountains and the seeds of smooth leaf varieties are prepared in the plains. For pure seed production, other varieties of spinach should not be grown within a distance of 100 meters. The first male flowers emerge on the flower stalk along with some leaves. Seeds are not formed on them. After that bisexual and female flowers emerge on the plants, which produce seeds. Although foreign spinach is a dioecious plant. But sometimes monoecious plants are also found. Seeds are produced in 150 days. Other requirements for seed production are like spinach. A good crop gives 700 to 800 kg of seeds per hectare. In the Netherlands, this yield has been found to be up to 2200 kg.