Malabar spinach
Vegetable · warm season · also called vine spinach, basella
When to plant
- Start seeds indoors about 6 weeks before planting out.
- Plant outdoors about 2 weeks after your average last spring frost.
- Ready to harvest about 70 days after planting out.
Climbing vine that thrives in heat when true spinach bolts.
Frost dates depend on where you live. Enter your ZIP code to get exact dates.
Dates by zone: 3a 3b 4a 4b 5a 5b 6a 6b 7a 7b 8a 8b 9a 9b 10a 10b
Growing basics
- Sun
- Part sun (4–6 hours)
- Spacing
- 12 in (trellised)
- Soil temperature
- At least 65°F
- Time to harvest
- About 70 days
- Containers
- At least 5 gallons
- Plant family
- Other
- Harvest per plant
- About 2 lb
- Seeds keep
- About 4 years
Companions
Keep apart: Horseradish. Horseradish spreads aggressively. Give it its own spot.
Keep apart: Mint. Mint spreads aggressively into neighbors. Keep it in a pot.
Keep apart: Fennel (bulb). Fennel slows the growth of most garden plants. Grow it on its own.
Keep apart: Sunchoke (Jerusalem artichoke). Sunchokes spread aggressively and shade neighbors.
Grow it well
Malabar spinach seeds on Amazon (opens a new tab)Trellis netting on Amazon (opens a new tab)Soaker hose on Amazon (opens a new tab)
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