Hello again!
The other night I purchased a multiple of leafy veggie seeds (spinach, kale, lettuce, etc) and amongst them was Swiss chard.
I've never grown it and I've never seen it being grown so I am utterly clueless as to what I am to do with it.
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Stick it in the ground and stand back. It grows rather well I love it last year was the first time for me and is was prolific with no fertilization though I would think a light hit of good nitrogen would help it row even better. I planted some seed and am waiting for it to pop.
But basically Swiss chard is of the beet family it is just harvested for the green and not the bulb. Hopefully you got the bright lights variety as it is very colorful as well. I grow it as lettuce some people use it in place of spinach. I always just chopped it up with outer lettuces and it was great.
It should do fine through the summer and all the way to first frost, it may even comeback in the spring if cut off at ground level.
I also remember hearing that is is barely bothered by disease of pest so bonus there, everyone should have some chard growing in there garden in mu opinion.
One more thing you harvest as a cut and come again just don't take more that 1/3 of the plant, that is the basic rule for plants of this nature.
good luck
But basically Swiss chard is of the beet family it is just harvested for the green and not the bulb. Hopefully you got the bright lights variety as it is very colorful as well. I grow it as lettuce some people use it in place of spinach. I always just chopped it up with outer lettuces and it was great.
It should do fine through the summer and all the way to first frost, it may even comeback in the spring if cut off at ground level.
I also remember hearing that is is barely bothered by disease of pest so bonus there, everyone should have some chard growing in there garden in mu opinion.
One more thing you harvest as a cut and come again just don't take more that 1/3 of the plant, that is the basic rule for plants of this nature.
good luck
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- rainbowgardener
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Agree with all the above. Just thought I'd say I love growing Swiss chard. My favorite thing, because it is so easy and it just keeps growing and growing. The spinach will be over and done by June and the Swiss chard keeps on trucking, even through the first few light frosts...
You can use it raw or cooked in any recipe that you would use spinach for. I made a Swiss chard lasagna last year, just using Swiss chard instead of the spinach and I liked it better than the spinach lasagna.
You can use it raw or cooked in any recipe that you would use spinach for. I made a Swiss chard lasagna last year, just using Swiss chard instead of the spinach and I liked it better than the spinach lasagna.
Yup Swiss Chard is excellent. I usually steam it until tender, but not mushy. Then just put what you like on it or eat it plain. Butter or vinegar are popular options. Salt or pepper if you like.
When you harvest, just go down the line & snip the outer leaves off each plant, leaving the bulk of the plant behind & it will produce all year long. Enjoy!
When you harvest, just go down the line & snip the outer leaves off each plant, leaving the bulk of the plant behind & it will produce all year long. Enjoy!
The Italian cooking lady on the PBS Create channel made a traditional pasta dish with Swiss chard. It was more or less what I do to eat it as a vegetable (steam and then saute with butter, garlic and onions) but she added some other stuff, probably cheese, olive oil etc. adn tossed it into some pasta so it is quite versatile. Makes sense since it has been grown since Roman times, long before beets were developed. I generally ignore mine until they get big (2 ft tall and wide), so beware of spacing if you are not going to keep up with them. They are beautiful plants in case you want to plant them as an ornamental in a flower bed and just eat a little off of them hear and there.
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Swiss Chard grows very well for me, and beets don't. I never could figure that out since they are in the same family!
I have never tasted Swiss Chard as a raw vegetable. I fix it many different ways, normally involving steaming, or boiling, it works either way, I even use it in lasagna, and in place of greens in stir fries, or egg rolls. It is very versatile, flavorful, without knocking you down.
And the colors of the bright lights, is as beautiful as any flower can be.
I have never tasted Swiss Chard as a raw vegetable. I fix it many different ways, normally involving steaming, or boiling, it works either way, I even use it in lasagna, and in place of greens in stir fries, or egg rolls. It is very versatile, flavorful, without knocking you down.
And the colors of the bright lights, is as beautiful as any flower can be.
Both chard and beets are the same plant, Beta vulgaris. The seeds sold for beets ("beet root" in Britain) are from cultivars developed for the large roots; those sold for chard have the normal skinny roots.TZ -OH6 wrote: Swiss chard... has been grown since Roman times, long before beets were developed.
So, if your beet greens look a lot like chard, there's a good reason...they are chard!
Cynthia H.
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I think you'd want them at least 12" apart, maybe even 18". The outer leaves flop over and crowd each other, so you want them to be far enough apart but close enough to provide good ground shade for living mulch (if you're growing in raised wide beds/blocks, that is. I guess row-growing folks always leave space on either side of the plant).
In my garden, during the summer humidity, the leaves pushing against each other tended to collect moisture and develop brown spots, which then attracted slugs (or it could be that the slugs were causing the brown spots). Anyway, I just want them to loosely support each other.
In my garden, during the summer humidity, the leaves pushing against each other tended to collect moisture and develop brown spots, which then attracted slugs (or it could be that the slugs were causing the brown spots). Anyway, I just want them to loosely support each other.
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When I make borscht, I use the beet root and the beet leaves as well (plus onions, potatoes, chicken stock, dill, lemon juice, salt, and yogurt).garden5 wrote:OK, if beets are a chard, can you eat beet leaves in addition to the root, or doesn't it work that way?
So...yes, you can def. eat the leaves!
Cynthia
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Your Borscht sounds delicious. Do you mind posting the recipe in the recipes forum?cynthia_h wrote:When I make borscht, I use the beet root and the beet leaves as well (plus onions, potatoes, chicken stock, dill, lemon juice, salt, and yogurt).garden5 wrote:OK, if beets are a chard, can you eat beet leaves in addition to the root, or doesn't it work that way?
So...yes, you can def. eat the leaves!
Cynthia