Planting spinach. Most widely
used of all the greens despite the many jests about its unpopularity
among youngsters. Spinach, a quick-growing crop, is demanding as
to climate and soil conditions. It is very sensitive to heat and,
although fairly hardy to cold and able to withstand winter conditions
in most of the southern half of the country, it may need winter
protection in the colder areas of the southern states.
In most parts of the North it is an
early spring and late fall crop. Only where moderate temperatures
prevail is winter and summer culture possible. It is highly sensitive
to soil acidity. Soil that is markedly acid must be limed until
the acidity is only slight. Spinach profits by use of rich soil
with abundant moisture and nitrogenous fertilizer. A pound of rotted
manure per square foot and 3 or 4 pounds of commercial fertilizer
per 100 square feet are suggested.
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