Vegetables · Cool
Spinach
Amaranthaceae
At a glance
- Plant spacing
- 15 cm
- USDA zones
- 3a–9a
- Frost-sensitive
- no
- Growth duration
- 7 weeks
Which beds suit?
- Sun (prefers)
- partial shadeAlso okay:full sun
- Soil (prefers)
- loamyAlso okay:raised-bed mix
- Drainage (prefers)
- normal
Seed & start
Direct sow
Sow directly into the bed — no pre-culture needed.
Stachi's tip
Spinach loves cool weather. Spring and autumn are its seasons — in high summer it bolts instantly. Sow in September and you'll harvest under fleece into December. My winter favourite.
The plant's year: sowing, transplanting, harvest
Sowing
Harvest
Good neighbours
Traditional recommendation. Rarely studied under controlled conditions — treat it as experience, not law.
Avoid these neighbours
Traditional recommendation. Rarely studied under controlled conditions — treat it as experience, not law.
Good pre-cultures
Stachi has no specific pre-cultures recorded.
What comes after Spinach?
When the bed frees up, the season is usually not over. We worked out what still fits afterwards — with time windows and reasons.
See follow-on crops for Spinach →Sources
- Kreuter, Bio-Garten
- Kosmos Gartenkalender
- LLM-Baseline-Intercrop
- LLM-Baseline-2026-05-09 yieldKg
- LLM-Baseline-2026-05-10 family-zehrer
- LLM-Baseline-2026-05-10 sun-soil-drainage
Where these figures come from
- Timing
- Horticulturally established — consistent across the cited standard works.
- Spacing
- Horticulturally established — consistent across the cited standard works.
- Companion planting
- Traditional recommendation. Rarely studied under controlled conditions — treat it as experience, not law.
- Crop rotation
- Traditional recommendation. Rarely studied under controlled conditions — treat it as experience, not law.
- Yield
- Limited evidence. This value is not backed by a specialist source — treat it as a pointer.
Sources: Kreuter, Bio-Garten · Kosmos Gartenkalender · LLM-Baseline-Intercrop · LLM-Baseline-2026-05-09 yieldKg · LLM-Baseline-2026-05-10 family-zehrer · LLM-Baseline-2026-05-10 sun-soil-drainage
Articles about this plant
Harvesting Jerusalem artichoke: why you dig after frost — and never find every tuber
Jerusalem artichoke is easy to grow, pretty, and almost impossible to get rid of again. Here's why the first proper frost weekend is the best time to dig, and what to do so your raised bed doesn't turn into a forest of it next year.
Winter Protection for Your Raised Bed: Fleece, Film, or Nothing at All?
Does your raised bed actually need a winter cover? When does fleece help, when is mulch enough – and when is nothing at all the right call. An honest guide.
Kale in the raised bed: plant it now in September
Kale needs frost to taste its best. Plant it now in September and you'll have a tough, harvest-ready crop from November onward — no starting from seed, no stress, no tricks.
Asian greens in the raised bed: sow tatsoi, mizuna and pak choi now
Tatsoi, mizuna, pak choi — these Asian greens are among the most robust autumn vegetables you can grow. Sow them now in September and you'll harvest fresh, mild leaves well into November, even through light frosts.
Sowing spinach in September: plant now for winter and spring
Sow spinach now in September and you'll harvest in autumn — then again in March, long before the first spring crops are ready. The short mid-September sowing window is one of the most useful in the whole gardening year.
Sow corn salad in September: the hardiest winter salad for your raised bed
Corn salad is the only salad that survives real frost and stays tender. September is the last good sowing window — wait any longer and you'll go without fresh salad until spring.
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Products mentioned in this post
- Plantura organic tomato seed set (10 varieties)Open-pollinated, good germination — robust for raised beds.
- Organic tomato seed set, 14 varieties
- Organic heirloom tomato seed set (Demeter, 12 varieties)
- Organic vegetable seed set, 10 varietiesCucumber, tomato, beetroot, broccoli, carrot, chard & more.