Growing strawberry spinach from seeds

In the wild, strawberry spinach is common on all continents except Antarctica. An unpretentious plant has a number of positive qualities that have a beneficial effect on human health. Many gardeners successfully grow Marya multifaceted, as they also call strawberry spinach, on their plots.

Features of the variety

Breeders have developed early, medium and late spinach varieties. Strawberry belongs to the first. It yields foliage already 15 days after the first shoots, and the fruits are edible already 4 days after the formation of the ovary. Another advantage of the variety is the aroma of its fruits: sweet, distinctly strawberry. Experienced gardeners take these berries in salads and for processing.

Outwardly, the plant is a small herbaceous bush with oblong leaves collected in a rosette at the root. In height it grows up to 50 cm. Like other varieties, male strawberry spinach bushes are less common, their foliage is smaller. Women already at the seedling stage are distinguished by a lush rosette and large leaves.

Harvesting seeds at home

If you don't want to take risks and constantly buy spinach seed, collect the plant's seed. To do this, simply select some well-developed ripe fruits and cut them off. At home, rub them a little with your hands and fill them with water in a small cup, then put them in a warm place.

After a few days, the fermentation process will begin, then rinse the seed mass through a sieve, getting rid of mucus. This operation may need to be repeated several times. Dry the finished seeds by scattering them in an even thin layer on paper, then collect and put in a paper bag. It is better to store the seeds before planting in a cool cellar or on the bottom shelf of the refrigerator.

Stratification

In the spring, before sowing, the seeds will need to be "awakened". It will increase germination and protect against diseases by soaking the seeds in a 1% solution of manganese with the addition of growth stimulants. To do this, wet a piece of gauze or cloth and sprinkle the seeds in an even layer. Then cover with a second wet piece or roll up and place in a plastic bag. Place the soaked seed in a warm place overnight. In the morning, the seeds must be dried and are ready for planting.

Sowing seedlings

Spinach is an unpretentious and fast-growing plant, so there is no need to grow seedlings. However, this will insure young plants from spring frosts, which are very strong and long-lasting. Also, the method is good in that it allows you to get out to the dacha only at the end of April-May, when the main harvesting and planting work begins. This is convenient when the site is far from home or it is inconvenient to travel to it.

Advice! Strawberry spinach grows excellently at home, on the windowsill, allowing you to enjoy fresh greens almost all year round.

When planting seeds in boxes, work is carried out according to a well-known scheme. A thin layer of expanded clay or other material for drainage is poured onto the bottom, and 2/3 of the container is filled with self-prepared or industrial soil.

Then, having drawn grooves to a depth of 20 mm, plant a row of seeds and cover with foil or a transparent cover. After the first shoots appear, remove the film and grow the seedlings. In phase 2 of a true leaf, spinach dive so that neighboring bushes do not shade each other. When 3-4 leaves have grown, the sprouts are planted in open ground.This work is allowed to begin in April and early March, as soon as the earth warms up to 13-15 °. In the future, the plants will need to be covered in extreme heat or active sunlight.

We have to take into account that the seedlings after moving to the garden will hurt, restoring the damaged root system. Therefore, it is recommended to plant strawberry spinach seeds directly in open ground in spring or late autumn.

Sowing in open ground

If you need the earliest possible harvest, it is better to plant seeds in the winter, but most often strawberry spinach is sown in early spring, as soon as the snow melts: the plant tolerates light frosts well and ripens quickly.

Site selection

It is better to take care of the place of planting seeds in the fall. Garden beds where potatoes, tomatoes, or all types of legumes grew are well suited. You should not choose a site in a sunny place, it is better to plant the plant in partial shade. Before digging, cover the surface of the bed with a layer of organic fertilizer with the addition of wood ash.

When planting seeds in poor soil, fertilizing with mineral fertilizers will be required.

For this 1 m² the beds are evenly covered with a mixture:

• nitrogen - 10 g;
• potash fertilizer - 10 g;
• phosphoric - 5 g.

After sowing or relocating seedlings, the use of nitrogen and organic fertilizers is not recommended due to the accumulation of nitrates in the foliage.

Landing

Before planting, in a couple of days, spill the garden bed with a slightly pink solution of potassium permanganate to prevent the development of parasites and diseases.

After stratification, while the seeds are drying, make holes 400 mm apart. Fill well with the watering can. Then put 2-3 seeds in there and cover with sand or sifted light soil.

To create a constant humid microclimate for the seedlings, cover the garden bed with polyethylene or dense covering material. A good option is plastic bottles with a cut-off neck. It is better to pick up bottles with a darkened surface, in this case, a greenhouse effect is created and a constant temperature and soil moisture is maintained.

After the appearance of the first shoots, the fabric or bottles are removed, it is time to care for the plantings.

Advice! For a consistent and good harvest, be sure to sow seeds in the seedless holes, and you will always have young and juicy strawberry spinach leaves on your table. Planting of seeds is stopped when the heat is stable in the summer months.

Plant care

Good ventilation and sunlight is important for the development of spinach bushes. In the first period, with active growth, it is necessary to maintain constantly loose and moist soil, therefore it is better to water it a little, but more often. Be sure to loosen the soil after each wetting.

When 2 true leaves grow on the sprouts, the planting should be thinned out, removing mainly male bushes and leaving gaps of 8-10 cm. When the leaves of neighboring plants begin to touch, carry out a second thinning.

Mulching the soil under the bushes will facilitate labor and reduce the amount of watering. To do this, use prepared old sawdust or sunflower seed husks. Or you can simply cover the row spacing with plucked weeds, the main thing is that there are no testes on it.

Top dressing

Timely feeding is important for the growth of foliage and berries. Covering the row spacing with ash, you not only apply fertilizer, but also get rid of the risk of fungal diseases. Alternating mineral solutions with ready-made liquid complex concentrates, you will need to feed the bushes at least 1 time in 14-15 days.

Diseases and pests

Strawberry spinach is practically not afraid of damage by garden pests and is resistant to all diseases. The only trouble for him is root rot from frequent and abundant soil moisture.It is simple to solve the problem - you need to reduce the number and volume of irrigations and fill the soil with 130 g of quicklime per 1 m for disinfection².

Will it be necessary to apply or treat the bushes with growth stimulants to increase the yield? According to experienced gardeners, this is not necessary. An annual plant develops well and quickly, subject to growing technology.

Large bushes and shoots with berries often need support, so hammer in a near-stem peg in advance and, if necessary, tie up the leaves.

Important! Strawberry spinach reproduces well on the site by self-seeding. Therefore, it is not recommended to leave ripe testes on the bushes, so that later you do not have to deal with spinach thickets throughout the site.

Strawberry spinach blooms within a month and a half after sprouts sprouting. The ripening period of the fruits will be extended for the entire time of plant growth remaining before frost.

Why strawberry spinach is good for you

Appreciated in strawberry spinach, primarily the leaves, which begin to collect in early spring and continue until late autumn. With a spring lack of vitamins, this is one of the best remedies: glossy leaves contain all types of vitamins and minerals, as well as proteins and multivitamins C1, B1, classes A, E.

Strawberry spinach is one of the leaders among vegetables in terms of iron content, and by the amount of proteins "zhmida" is much ahead of milk and cabbage. The berries of this type of plant are used to decorate dishes, they have a bland taste, only the slight aroma of strawberries in your vegetable salad is valuable. Ripe berry juice is used to prepare a bright red natural dye.

Planting and caring for strawberry spinach does not require a lot of time and effort. In return for a minimum of attention, the plant will give several harvests of healthy juicy greens and fragrant fruits.