PlantSowGrow
How to grow Perpetual Spinach
Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris
Perpetual Spinach is an easy-to-grow 'cut & come again' beet leaf that tastes like spinach but doesn't bolt. It's winter hardy, productive, and can last for up to 2 years if picked regularly. It produces the earliest fresh vegetables of the year and is suitable for container growing.
At a glance: Sow late March to mid July, harvest from mid May.
When to sow, plant and harvest
Timed for a typical UK garden (last frost mid-April). The app uses your own town's frost dates.
Growing Perpetual Spinach: what it needs
- Light
- Full sun · 6+ hours a day
- Watering
- Water regularly in dry weather
- Soil
- Fertile, well-drained soil
- Spacing
- 30 cm
- In pots
- Grows well in containers
- Feeding
- A general feed before sowing or planting
- Harvest
- About 60 days from sowing
- Hardiness
- USDA zones 3–9
- Difficulty
- Easy
Step by step
- Late March – mid July · 3 weeks before the last spring frost
Sow Seeds Outdoors
Sow thinly in drills where they are to grow.
- 7–14 days after “Sow Seeds Indoors” · Early April
Check Germination
Seedlings should appear in 7–14 days. If sown outdoors, thin to 30 cm apart when big enough to handle.
- 46–67 days after “Check Germination” · Mid May – early June
Start Harvesting
Pick the outer leaves regularly; plants crop for a year or more and rarely bolt.
- 240–270 days after “Start Harvesting” · Mid January – mid February
Finish and Clear
Clear the remains to the compost heap once cropping ends.
Good companions
beans,peas,radishes
