SPINACH

Spinach belongs to family of "Amaranthaceae" and it is native of central and western Asia. It is perennial vegetable and cultivated throughout the world. Spinach is also known as "Palak" in Hindi. It is a rich source of iron, vitamin and anti-oxidants. It has many health benefits. It helps to increases immunity. It is good for digestion, also good for skin, hair, eyes and for brain health. It has anti-cancer and anti-ageing property. Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, West Bengal and Gujarat are leading producing states of spinach in India.

It can be grown on any type of soil having good drainage capacity. But it gives good result when grown on sandy loam and alluvial soil. Avoid acidic soils also water logged soils for spinach cultivation. pH of soil should be in range of 6 to 7.

Pusa Harit: Straight plant and green long thick leaves. It is suitable for growing in low and intermediate areas. It gives an average yield of 62.5-84qtl/acre.

Benarji joint: Suitable for all areas. It gives an average yield of 62.5-80qtl/acre.

Other state varieties:

Punjab Green: Plant is semi erect with dark shining leaves. The variety is ready for first cutting in 30 days after sowing. Gives average yield of 125qtl/acre. It has low oxalic acid content.

Punjab Selection: Foliage is light green color, thin, long and narrow. Leaves are lightly sour in taste and purple pigmentation present on stem. It gives average yield of 115qtl/acre.

Other variety: Pusa jyoti, Pusa Palak, Pusa harit, Pusa Bharati.
  

Prepare soil by ploughing for two to three times. After ploughing do leveling of soil for uniform bed formation. Prepare bed and irrigation channels.

Time of sowing
Low areas: July-November, February-March
Intermediate areas: July-October, February-April
High areas: March-June

Spacing
Use row to row spacing of 25-30 cm and plant to plant spacing of 5-7 cm.

Sowing Depth
Sow seeds at depth of 3-4 cm.

Method of Sowing
Sowing can be done by line sowing and broadcasting method.
 

Seed Rate
Use seed rate of 10-12.5kg/acre.

Seed Treatment
Before sowing soak seeds in water for 12-24 hours. It will increased germination percentage.
 

Fertilizer Requirement (kg/acre)

Nutrient Requirement (kg/acre)

For good yield, apply well decomposed cowdung@40qtl/acre and Nitrogen@28 kg (in form of Urea@62 kg), Phosphorus@21 kg (in form of Superphosphate@132 kg) per acre and potash@12kg/acre (in the form of MOP@20kg/acre). Apply whole amount of well decomposed cow dung and phosphorus along with half amount of nitrogen before sowing. Apply remaining amount of nitrogen in two equal splits after each cutting. After fertilizer application provide light irrigation.

For proper seed germination and good growth soil should have enough moisture content.  At time of sowing if proper soil moisture is not present in soil then provide pre-sowing irrigation.
First irrigation should be given after sowing. In summer month, apply irrigation at interval of 4-6 days where as in winter month apply irrigation at interval of 10-12 days.  Avoid over irrigation also care should be taken not to water on leaves, as it will leads to occurrence of disease and deterioration of quality. Drip irrigation is beneficial for spinach cultivation.
 

To keep check on weeds along with to provide aeration to soil two - three hoeing are required. To control weed chemically, use stomp@1-1.12 ltr/acre as pre-emergence herbicide. Do not use weedicide afterwards. 

• Pest and their control:
  

Aphid: If infestation is observed, take spray of Malathion 50EC@350 ml/ 80-100 ltr of water. Do not harvest crop immediately after spraying of Malathion. Harvest seven days after spray.

• Disease and their control:

Cercospora Leaf spot: On leaves, small circular to semi circular spots with grey centre and red margins appeared. On seed crop, if infestation is observed, take spray of Carbendazim@400 gm or Indofil M-45@400 gm in 150 ltr of water per acre. If necessary repeat spray with intervals of 15 days.

Depending upon variety, crop is ready for first cutting 25-30 days after sowing. For harvesting, use sharp knife or sickle. Depending upon variety and season, subsequent cutting should be done at interval of 20-25 days.

For seed production, use spacing of 50 cm x 30 cm. Keep isolation distance of 1000 m around palak seed plot. Skip one row after every five rows; it is essential for field inspection. Remove disease plant; also remove plant showing variation in leaf characteristic. Harvest crop when seed stalks turn brown. After harvesting keep plant in field for curing and drying purpose for a week. After proper drying, for seed purpose, threshing of crop is to be done.