How to grow orach (mountain spinach)
Family Amaranthaceae. Hardy to USDA hardiness zone 3a+ (U.S. Department of Agriculture). Full sun to part shade. Ready in 40-50 days.
Sun
Full sun to part shade
Spacing
10-12 in
Days to harvest
40-50 days
Hardiness
Zone 3a+
What growers actually recorded
Loading zone 7b results…
When to plant orach (mountain spinach)
- Direct sow: ~-4 weeks after last frost.
Companion plants for orach (mountain spinach)
Plant with: Spinach, Lettuce.
Common pests & problems
Rarely bothered.
Feeding & fertilizer
N-P-K ratio: Balanced 5-5-5, boron matters for beets
Organic options: Compost + wood ash · Kelp meal for micronutrients · Fish emulsion every 3 wks
When to feed: Bed prep with compost + kelp, one side-dress mid-season.
Watch for: Black spot in beet roots = boron deficit; a pinch of borax per gallon foliar-sprayed fixes it.
N = nitrogen (leaves), P = phosphorus (roots and flowers), K = potassium (fruit and disease resistance). How to read a fertilizer label →
Grower's tip
Grows taller than spinach; harvest young leaves continually and it keeps producing through summer heat that would bolt spinach.
When to plant orach (mountain spinach) in your zone
Free month-by-month sowing and transplanting lists, built from frost dates for your USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) hardiness zone.
Soil & water for orach (mountain spinach)
Soil & pH
6.5-7.5: beets/spinach hate acidic soil
Well-drained loam. Add lime if pH is below 6.5 or roots stall.
Compost + a tablespoon of borax dissolved in a gallon of water per 25 sq ft prevents beet black-spot (boron deficit).
Watering
1 in / week
Consistent moisture. Drought stress makes spinach bolt in a week.
Beets and chard tell the truth with their leaves: if lower leaves are soft and yellow while the top stays green, the soil is staying too wet, not too dry. If leaves are thin and cupped upward, water.
Knowing when to harvest
- Leaves 3-5 in for the mildest, most tender texture; larger leaves turn coarser.
- Harvest young shoots and leaves regularly before the plant bolts to seed.
- Once flower spikes appear, leaf quality declines quickly; that signals near the end of the harvest window.
Storing & keeping
Refrigerate unwashed in a perforated bag at 32-40°F for 3-5 days; more delicate than chard and best used quickly. Cooks down similarly to spinach and can be blanched and frozen.
What to expect
Per plant: 0.5-1 lb over repeated picking
Troubleshooting orach (mountain spinach)
Bolts quickly in warm weather
Likely cause: Heat and long daylight, similar to spinach
What to do: Sow successively in spring and let some plants go to seed for a self-sowing patch rather than fighting the bolt.
Leaves fade from red to green
Likely cause: Full sun and heat can mute anthocyanin coloring in red varieties
What to do: Partial afternoon shade helps preserve deeper leaf color in hot climates.
Varieties worth growing
Red Orach (Atriplex hortensis var. rubra)
Deep burgundy leaves prized for color in salads and as a garden ornamental.
Green Orach
Traditional spinach-substitute type, mild and productive in cool weather.
Growing orach (mountain spinach) in containers
10 in deep pot; grows readily in containers though its tall, branching habit needs some room.
Nutrition
Iron, magnesium, folate (spinach); betalains (beet).
Common questions
Is orach a good spinach substitute in summer?
Yes, it tolerates heat better than true spinach and can be grown through warm stretches when spinach would bolt immediately.
Does orach reseed itself?
Readily. Left to flower, it drops abundant seed and often returns as a volunteer the following year.
Where these numbers come from
- USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map (2023 revision). Zone assignment and the 30-year normals behind every cold-hardiness figure.
- NOAA NCEI 1991-2020 Climate Normals. Frost dates, growing-season length, and the probability bands on both.
- Cornell, UMN, and UC Davis Cooperative Extension crop guides. Spacing, days to maturity, soil pH targets, and per-plant yield ranges.
- USDA FSIS / FDA Produce Safety guidance. Wash, cure, and cold-storage handling numbers.
Ranges are regional guidance, not a promise for your yard. Your own logged results always override the published range.