Giant Winter Organic

SKU: SP717
Giant Winter Organic spinach was bred specifically for autumn, winter, and early spring harvests. It is the most cold hardy spinach, and will thrive in a winter greenhouse or polytunnel, our outdoors under a layer of mulch. Read More

Exposure Full-sun to partial shade

Matures in 45 days

Season Cool season

Seed type OP ?

Giant Winter Organic has a rating of 4.5 stars based on 6 reviews.
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Heirloom Organic Canada Organic Certified
Shipping & Returns

West Coast Seeds ships anywhere in North America. However, we are not able to ship garlic, potatoes, asparagus crowns, bulbs, onion sets, Mason bee cocoons, or nematodes outside of Canada. We regret, we cannot accept returns or damages for orders outside of Canada. The minimum shipping charge to the US is $9.99.

Giant Winter Organic

Product Details

CERTIFIED ORGANIC! Giant Winter Organic spinach was bred specifically for autumn, winter, and early spring harvests. It is the most cold hardy spinach, and will thrive in a winter greenhouse or polytunnel, our outdoors under a layer of mulch. Or direct sow in October and November for a very early crop from February through April. This old heirloom grows to the size of Swiss chard leaves. Its leaves are dark green and slightly savoyed, and vaguely triangular in shape.

Matures in 45 days. (Open-pollinated seeds)

Quick Facts:

    • Cold hardy
    • High yielding
    • Tolerates rain & snow
    • Matures in 45 days

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All About Giant Winter Organic

Latin

Latin
Spinacia oleracea
Family: Amaranthaceae

Difficulty

Difficulty
Easy

We Recommend

We Recommend: Monstrueux de Viroflay (SP713). Most of the spinach varieties we offer are hybrids that mature early and resist bolting. For growers, these may make the better choice. But we also love the open pollinated heirloom Viroflay, which stands apart from the rest for its sheer size. And the leaves stay tender and delicious even when the plant is fully mature. This is a very nice spinach for the home garden.
For Urban Gardeners: Try Space (SP704) in containers or even window boxes. Space is very compact and upright, holding its leaves skyward for easy harvesting. Plus it’s super fast growing and very tasty.

Season & Zone

Season & Zone
Season: Cool season
Exposure: Full sun to partial shade

Timing

Timing
Spinach does best in cool weather. Direct sow in the period four weeks before, and three weeks after the last frost date. Spinach will bolt once days get long and hot. Some varieties grow enough to harvest before they bolt. For continuous supply, plant every 3 weeks.

Sow again in the middle two weeks of August for a fall crop that, if cut at the soil level, will come back early the following spring where winters are mild. Shade summer-sown seed beds, keep very well watered, and sow more seeds than you need, as warm soil will reduce germination rates marginally. Thin seedlings, and use cloche protection as cold weather approaches. Late sowings like this can be harvested into December – in mild winters if cloche protection is provided.

Optimal soil temperature: 5-20°C (45-70°F). Seeds should sprout in 7-14 days.

Starting

Starting
Sow seeds 1cm (1/2″) deep, 10 seeds per 30cm (12″), in rows 30-45cm (12-18″) apart. Thin to at least 5-8cm (2-3″) between plants, or further if you want larger leaves.

Days to Maturity

Days to Maturity: From direct sowing.

Growing

Growing
Ideal pH: 6.0-6.5. This heavy feeder requires rich soil. Dig in ¼-½ cup balanced organic fertilizer beneath every 1m (3′) of row. Overwintering spinach requires well drained soil.

Harvest

Harvest
For baby greens, pick when the leaves are 7-10cm (3-4″) long. Individual leaves can be picked at anytime, until the plant has started to bolt. Cut the whole spinach plant just above soil level.

Seed Info

Seed Info
In optimal conditions at least 65% of seeds will germinate. Usual seed life: 3 years. Per 100′ row: 400 seeds, per acre: 174M seeds.

Diseases & Pests

Diseases & Pests
Pale, soft tunnels on leaves are probably leaf miner damage. Prevent by covering with floating row cover. You can kill the little insect causing the damage by pinching it inside the leaf. Destroy any affected leaves. Downy mildew is a fungal disease that causes greyish mould on the leaves. To avoid it, provide ample ventilation and avoid overhead watering.

How to Grow Spinach

Step 1

Timing

Spinach does best in cool weather. Direct sow in the period four weeks before, and three weeks after the last frost date. Spinach will bolt once days get long and hot. Some varieties grow enough to harvest before they bolt. For continuous supply, plant every 3 weeks.

Sow again in the middle two weeks of August for a fall crop that, if cut at the soil level, will come back early the following spring where winters are mild. Shade summer-sown seed beds, keep very well watered, and sow more seeds than you need, as warm soil will reduce germination rates marginally. Thin seedlings, and use cloche protection as cold weather approaches. Late sowings like this can be harvested into December – in mild winters if cloche protection is provided.

Optimal soil temperature: 5-20°C (45-70°F). Seeds should sprout in 7-14 days.

Step 2

Starting

Sow seeds 1cm (1/2″) deep, 10 seeds per 30cm (12″), in rows 30-45cm (12-18″) apart. Thin to at least 5-8cm (2-3″) between plants, or further if you want larger leaves.

Step 3

Growing

Ideal pH: 6.0-6.5.

This heavy feeder requires rich soil. Dig in ¼-½ cup balanced organic fertilizer beneath every 1m (3′) of row. Overwintering spinach requires well drained soil.

Step 4

Germination

Days to maturity: From direct sowing.

In optimal conditions at least 65% of seeds will germinate. Usual seed life: 3 years. Per 100′ row: 400 seeds, per acre: 174M seeds.

Step 5

Harvest

For baby greens, pick when the leaves are 7-10cm (3-4″) long. Individual leaves can be picked at anytime, until the plant has started to bolt. Cut the whole spinach plant just above soil level.

Tips

Disease & Pests

Pale, soft tunnels on leaves are probably leaf miner damage. Prevent by covering with floating row cover. You can kill the little insect causing the damage by pinching it inside the leaf. Destroy any affected leaves. Downy mildew is a fungal disease that causes greyish mould on the leaves. To avoid it, provide ample ventilation and avoid overhead watering.

Customer Reviews & Questions