- USDA hardiness zones:
- -
- Days to maturity:
- 50 - 60
Multi-colored variety. Seed Savers Exchange explains: "Thompson & Morgan offered Rainbow Chard from 1970 through 1989 and then dropped the variety after the number of colors began to decrease. After years of searching, SSE discovered that our friends at Digger's Garden Club in Australia have been offering the true Five Color Silverbeet for a decade. Spectacular range of colors throughout the entire season. Re-selected strain , seed crops of all the different colors grown in isolation to maintain a proper balance of colors."
Plant your seeds just under a month before last expected frost. Sow seeds 1/2 to 1 inch (1 to 2 cm) deep, 2 to 6 inches (5 to15 cm) apart, in rows 18 to 24 inches (45 to 60 cm) apart. Chard seeds tend to produce more than one plant, like beets, and will require you to thin them to 6 to 12 inch (15 - 30 cm) spacings. Harvesting can begin with when leaves reach a decent size. Snip plants an inch or two above soil for cut-and-come-again harvest, or remove a leaf or two from each plant. Cut plants back down to 3-5 inches (6 - 12 cm) tall to encourage new growth, since older leaves get tough.
Whatever you do, be sure to avoid the growing point in the center of the plant.
Make succession plantings through late summer.
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