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Guide on Swiss chard growing and how to harvest Swiss chard
Growing Swiss chard is almost like growing spinach. Swiss chard, or chard, falls within the beet family of vegetables. Here is a guide on growing Swiss Chard and how to harvest Swiss chard on your farm.
The technical name of Chard (/tʃɑːrd/) or Swiss chard, is Beta
vulgaris subsp. vulgaris, Cicla-Group and Flavescens-Group. But simply, it is
just a green leafy vegetable – commonly identified as a red leafy spinach beet
with broad, thick stems. However, chard is available in a range of colours - brilliant
white, zingy yellow, and even lipstick pink!
Benefits of Swiss chard
There are many reasons why a farmer involved in market
gardening would want to grow chard.
Benefits of Swiss chard include a known an
ability to regulate blood sugar levels, prevent various types of cancer,
improve digestion, boost the immune system, reduce fever, and combat
inflammation.
Chard also helps lower blood pressure, prevent heart
diseases, increase bone strength, detoxify the body, and strengthen the
functioning of the brain.
Besides growing chard is not complicated as it is readily does
well in both cool and warm temperatures. It can be grown from early spring
right up to frost.
Swiss chard can also be harvested over a long period, and
will continue to grow new leaves when not harvested for a time.
For farmers, it is also a worthwhile vegetable to grow as it is popular in many markets. Chard is often cooked and served like spinach in salads and many other recipes.
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| Swiss chard growing |
Swiss chard growing
While chard can almost grow in any climate or season, we recommend
sowing seeds direct into the ground from mid Spring to late summer. You will
also want to keep it well watered in dry weather or the dry months.
Chard prefers rich, well-drained soil in full sun or light
shade.
A week before sowing, scatter a general-purpose organic
fertiliser then rake the soil to a fine tilth.
Mark out seed drills with a trowel. Swiss chard seeds can be
put into the soil about 1 or 2 inches (2-4cm) deep.
About Swiss chard spacing – Space the large seeds about one
to two inches (2-5cm) apart. Sow seeds in rows spaced 16in (40cm) apart.
If the ground is very dry, water along the drills before
sowing to cool and moisten the soil. Cover the seeds over with soil, gently pat
down then water along the rows to further settle the soil and prime your seeds
for germination.
Come back and thin seedlings in stages to 12 inches (30cm)
apart when they are large enough to handle.
An alternative to direct sowing is to grow Swiss chard
seedlings in pots while harvesting another crop from the farm or garden then
transplant it from those pots once space is available.
This method can also help prevent slugs damaging the young
seedlings.
Chard pests and diseases
An advantage of growing Swiss chard is that the plants are
rarely bothered by pests and diseases that affect most vegetables and grows
easily. However, watch out for slugs (snails) which will eat the young plants.
Keep the ground free of weeds and water in hot, dry weather.
Using a hoe to decapitate weeds as they appear makes the job a doddle. Regular
watering will encourage plenty of fresh, leafy growth, and is essential in dry
weather to stop the plants from running to seed, or ‘bolting’.
If they reach this stage, they should be dug up and added to
the compost heap as they'll stop producing tender leaves.
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| how to harvest Swiss chard |
How to harvest Swiss chard
Cut a few leaves from the outside of the plant regularly
from late spring onwards.
Use thinnings as salad greens. Harvest outer leaves as
needed, when they are more than 6 inches long. Cut the leaves about 1 inch from
the ground.
You must harvest chard continually to keep the plants
productive.
Before winter, you can dig up the plants with the roots
still attached, and with some soil covering the roots. If you store the plants
where it is cool and moist, you can keep harvesting from them during the
winter.
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