Freezing Spinach Australia Farming in Garden Farm | Aplus Farms
Freezing Spinach and silverbeet look and taste like they're in the same club but they are more different.
Spinach and silverbeet are often confused with each other - and these leafy green veggies do have similar tastes and appearances - but for the best growing success in your garden it's worth taking note of their differences.
We give the name silverbeet to Beta vulgaris plants grown for their leaves. But this botanical name includes myriad "cousins" such as beetroot, perpetual spinach, chard and Swiss chard, all of which share the same scientific moniker.
Traditional silverbeet - the variety 'Fordhook Giant', for example - is green with white stems. However, the showy rainbow-stemmed silverbeet is commonly called Swiss or rainbow chard. All silverbeet is a powerhouse of nutrition, containing high levels of magnesium, calcium, vitamin K, iron, potassium, vitamin A, zinc, copper, vitamin C, dietary fibre and vitamin E.
If picked young and tender, silverbeet leaves are lovely raw in a salad. However, once mature the leaves are most palatable cooked as the stalks can be quite thick. Swiss or rainbow chard retains most of its vibrant colour when cooked lightly, so don't overcook it and you'll have a party on your plate!
The smaller-leafed spinach (Spinacia oleracea) is the green veg said to give Popeye his strength.Indeed, spinach is generally more nutritious than silverbeet with more calcium, iron and folate. Baby spinach leaves are delicious fresh in a salad or very slightly wilted atop a quiche or pizza. Although delicious raw, recent studies show the body absorbs more iron from this leafy green if it's lightly steamed before eating.
Growing, Caring
- Silverbeet is far more heat tolerant than spinach.
- Grows well through spring and summer.
- Especially if planted beneath taller crops for protection from the hot afternoon sun.
- Although spinach doesn't like the heat of summer, it is more frost and cold tolerant than silverbeet so it tends to be grown in late autumn and winter.
In many parts of Australia,
- silverbeet will survive as a year-round crop.
- Freezing Spinach, however, will have a shorter growing season as it tends to bolt to seed in warmer weather.
- Both silverbeet and spinach love a rich, well-drained soil that's been loaded with organic goodies like compost.
Nutrition Tips
Although delicious raw, recent studies show the body absorbs more iron from this leafy green [spinach] if it's lightly steamed before eating.
Different Kinds Of Vegetables
- Perpetual spinach (Beta vulgaris) : Perpetual Spinach is technically a silverbeet but with a flavour that's like a combination of spinach and silverbeet. This variety grows well in summer and autumn without bolting. Just as pretty in the patch as it is on the plate, Swiss or rainbow chard (B. vulgaris), as the name suggests, is often grown for its show-stopping colourful stems.
- Bloomsdale spinach (Spinacia oleracea) : Bloomsdale Spinach is an heirloom variety that dates back to 1826, has a neat rosette of bright green leaves and is fairly resistant to bolting. Another heirloom variety is 'Winter Giant' (S. oleracea), with large green leaves perfect for cooking into winter curries and soups.
Scientific Freezing Spinach & Silverbeet
- Common name: Spinach, English spinach
- Botanical name: Spinacia oleracea
- Common name: Silverbeet
- Botanical name: Beta vulgaris
- Family (both): Amaranthaceae
- Aspect and soil (both): Sun; rich, well-drained soil
- Best climate (spinach): Cool to subtropical
- Best climate (silverbeet): All
- Habit (both): Annual
- Propagation (both): Seed, seedlings
- Difficulty (both): Easy