WHEN TO PLANT:Silverbeet can be planted and grown all year and will be ready for harvest 8 – 12 weeks after planting. It is one ofthe few vegetables that we can growduring winter throughout NewZealand, though in frost prone areasthe baby plants will need to protectedby cloches or grown in a greenhouse.

WHERE TO PLANT:IN THE GROUND OR RAISED GARDEN BED Choose an area where there is plenty of sun, and that is protected from wind. Using a garden fork or trowels, break up the top layer soil to aerate it. You may wish to fork in some compost, sheep pellets or worm castings at this stage – this will provide the “food” or nutrients your silverbeet plants need to grow.

IN CONTAINERSPrepare your container by making some small holes in the bottom of your container so water can drain out. Options for containers include plant pots or plastic buckets. Cover the bottom of the container with a small layer of stones, broken rocks, concrete chips or broken tiles to allow water to drain through. Cover the stones with potting mix or soil. Often garden centres will donate split bags of potting mix to schools, so it’s worth asking at your local garden centre! Like the in-ground garden, your containers will need to be placed in a sunny, protected area if you want your silverbeet plants to flourish.

HOW TO PLANT: Like most vegetables, silverbeet can be grown from seed. Silverbeet seeds should be soaked for several hours before planting. Using your finger make small holes 5 cm apart, and 2-3 centimetres deep. Place one seed in each hole and cover with soil. (If you are using a bucket, put 6-8 seeds in each one). Mark the area of ground or the container where you have planted your seeds, and use a wooden craft stick to write the name of the vegetable so you remember where and what you have planted. Water your seeds well but gently so as not to wash away the covering soil. If you want your silverbeet ready for harvest more quickly you can purchase seedlings at your local garden centre which will shave 2-3 weeks from the growing time and be ready for harvest in 6-10 weeks.

LOOKING AFTER YOUR PLANTS:Check on your seeds every couple of days and water if the soil feels dry. It is better to water your seeds well twice a week than to water a little bit every day. This is because you want the water to reach down to the roots of the plant. Your silverbeet plants should germinate in 2-3 weeks depending on how warm it is. Silverbeet plants are heavy feeders so will benefit from some liquid fertilizer or worm tea every 2 – 3 weeks. Check out GTT’s Compost, Bokashi and Worm Bins Resource for information on how to make your own plant food. Keep an eye on your plants to make sure they are flourising. If the leaves are yellowing they may need more water or fertilizer.

Turn a milk bottle into a watering can by poking small holes in the lid (a

heated needle is ideal, if possible, as it makes small hole). Fill the milk

bottle with water and these tiny holes will provide a gentle spray of water

that will not drown the seeds.

Once the seedlings are 10cm high and more robust, small plant pots can be

used as watering cans

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If you see holes in the leaves you may have a problem with slugs or snails so see if you can spot them and pick them off your plant. Sometimes your seeds may sprout too close together and you may need to remove some of the smaller plants to make space for the larger, stronger plants to grow.

HARVESTINGSilverbeet is ready to pick between 8-12 weeks after planting. It is a goodvegetable to ‘cut and come again’, soyou can pick and use your silverbeetand more will grow. The youngestleaves are most tender while olderleaves are more bitter and better ifcooked. If you want to extend theharvesting season pick the larger,outermost leaves to allow the smallerleaves to keep growing.

STORAGE:Silverbeet is highly perishable so it is desirable (and most delicious!) to use it the same day it is harvested. If you do need to store your silverbeet you can do so in a plastic bag in the fridge.

TERM 3 SILVERBEET

GROWING SILVERBEET

Silverbeet is also known as chard, swiss chard, spinach beet and sea kale beet. It is a great starter-crop for new and young gardeners and is a staple in many New Zealand gardens as it grows well and can be used in a number of delicious and nutri-tious meals. While silverbeet has a silver or white stalk, if you purchase a variety of beet known as rainbow chard you can create a colourful and eye-catching display with red, crimson, pink, purple and yellow stalks.

COOKING SILVERBEET

You are now ready to cook some simple delicious meals with your very own silverbeet!

Silverbeet is similar to spinach with a stronger flavour and can be used interchangeably in recipes that call for spinach. As silverbeet grows easily and is available all year round in New Zealand it often features in winter menus when there is less produce readily available.

HOW TO PREPARE THE SILVERBEET FOR COOKING:Before cooking with silverbeet make sure you carefully wash the stems and leaves to remove any dirt. Double check the bottom of the stems as that is where most of the soil will be found.

COOKING METHODS:Both the leaves and stems of silverbeet can be eaten, though the stalks take longer to cook than the leaves. Very young silverbeet leaves can be used in salads, but any medium or larger leaves need to be cooked to reduce the amount of oxalic acid. Silverbeet can be boiled, microwaved, steamed, stir fried, pureed or used in savoury baking.

Some simple recipes for you to try are on the GTT website:

Garlicky greens

Greens + cheese fritters

See Garden to Table’s Setting up your Classroom as a

Kitchen resource for tips on how you can easily cook the delicious produce you have

grown. You don’t need lots of equipment or a kitchen to give your students a fun cooking

experience!

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EXTENSION IDEAS• Turn your silverbeet project into a science experiment

by growing plants under different conditions. For example, you could put your plants in different areas (some sunny, some shady, with or without a cloche) plant in spring and winter, or give them different amounts of water and fertilizer and see how this impacts on their growth.

• Turn your silverbeet project into a technology lesson by getting your students involved in using a drill to prepare your containers for planting. Or make some cloches out of empty plastic milk or juice bottles.

• Turn your silverbeet project into a maths sessionby using rulers to measure out planting distance for seeds, recording how long the plants to take to grow and measuring their growth, or counting the leaves, or recording what percentage of the seeds germinate.

• Turn your silverbeet project into a writing project by keeping a garden diary about your silverbeet plants and recording the process of how you planted them, how they grow and how you harvest them.

• Turn your silverbeet project into a way to engage whanau by sending home silverbeet seeds or seedlings for children to grow at home and sending home the silverbeet recipes. You might also like to invite whanau into school to help with supervision when you are gardening and cooking.

• Don’t forget to check out Garden to Table’s Online Curriculum Resources for more great ideas and worksheets

Even though most recipes call for the silverbeet stem to be cut away from the stalks and then the leaves shredded, younger children can do this without the need for knives by tearing up the silverbeet leaves. Of course, even very young children can learn how to safely use a knife. Check out the great videos by our ambassador Al Brown where he shows children how to hold and chop with a knife. We recommend you show these to your class before you start cooking. You can print and hang this safety poster in your classroom to remind everyone of the basic techniques.

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