New Zealand Spinach Deep Dive

New Zealand Spinach

This isn’t your typical spinach that you would plant in the cool seasons, and as soon as the heat hits, they bolt. New Zealand Spinach (Tetragonia tetagonioides) is a heat-loving alternative. When its cousin is getting burned out of the garden, this one is just getting started and will give you leaves all summer long. In zones 8+ it can be used as a perennial and will give you multiple years of harvest and become a staple plant in your landscape.

The leaves are more succulent and can range from a heart shape to a diamond shape. It has a thicker, more fleshy texture when compared to your typical spinach. Plants can range from about 1-2 ft in height and width.

Care

These plants are relatively easy to grow and care for. They enjoy full sun but here in the panhandle they do better with some afternoon shade to help with the intense heat. There are a few bugs that give them trouble, such as leaf miners, cabbage worms, cabbage loopers, and aphids. So if you are companion planting keeping this plant away from cabbage and others in the Brassicaceae family. And as long as they have well-draining soil, then they should do just fine. They do well when planted with strawberries. 

Types

The most common variety available is the “Maori”. Any others that you may come across and grow will all get to about the same size. Older leaves get more bitter as they age. In a healthy plant if it gets away from you then you can cut it back and it will regrow. But with constant harvests year-round, keeping the leaves young and flavorful is no issue.

Thanks for taking a read about New Zealand Spinach, and let me know if there is anything else you would like to know about them or another fruit that I haven’t covered yet. Come back next week when I talk about landscaping with fruiting plants.

If you want to change your landscape or include a garden and want to know how to incorporate fruit trees, bushes, and many other perennials with annual veggies, we can help. A personal consultation, either in person or online, will get you on the right track. Forget the learning curve, start in the right direction. If you are not in Florida, we can still get you going in the right direction with the right plants for your climate.

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