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swiss chard
songbird wrote:
did the Swiss invent it or did they just get lucky and grab the name first? WikiP says its Mediterranean and "Swiss" is to distinguish from French. Does anybody have "French chard"? we'll see how it goes here, i planted three areas today with the Burpee Neon Mix. two outside the fenced garden and a backup patch inside the fenced garden. the package says "average soil" which around here the average would be hard as a rock right now and mostly clay. i don't think they mean that! however, two patches are in the lighter soil space i have and the backup patch is also amended lighter soil too. so i don't think i've erred, until the bunnies find them delicious. It's pretty hardy and flexible, not fussy really. It will self-seed and grow in all sorts of places. Ma asked me what it was like and i said, "Yummy, like beets, but greener!" this mix is four colors, so i will be curious as to how they do here. i've always loved it, always wanted to grow some, but until now we've not had the space in the fenced garden for a plant like this, but now it's in. i'm looking forwards to learning yet another thing this year. You will be faced with one of life's turning points. To eat the stalks or not. If you choose yes then cook the stalks separately from the leaves otherwise the one will be underdone and the other overdone. The key is to pick them while the leaves are tender and not too strong in flavour. The leaves can be allowed to grow to full size (or nearly) but regular cutting keeps them producing. i think they will be a good refuge type plant for the good bugs. And snails and slugs should be in the full sun or close to it. shaded a little right now by flowers and some trefoil, but i can trim that back if it looks to be taking over. If they get at least some sun they will grow but they are best in full sun. let grow untouched first year and harvest next year? No. Harvest according to the vigour of the plant. Cut from the outside and always leave a few healthy leaves in the centre to carry on. Once they are going well you may be able to cut quite frequently and still have them prosper. harvest a little this year after they get a few big leaves? Harvest as soon as they have enough leaves. are these biannual like beets? Yes. They ARE beets! says the seeds want even moisture for sprouting, that might be a challenge in sandier soil. You can start them in trays, they transplant quite well. how hardy are they when it gets hot and dry? They will do better than many leafy veges like lettuce but try to keep them watered or they will wilt in the afternoon. do they get deep tap roots? Yes flower second season? Yes. When the flower stalk comes up you can cut all the baby leaves along its sides which will be very tender and mild spread by root division? No only seed. David |
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