The vegetable is a member of the
leafy green family
along with kale, lettuce, spinach, and collard greens. Swiss chard is often associated with the pathogens coli, Listeria, and Salmonella because the crop is a raw, fresh marketed product.
Is Swiss chard part of the cabbage family?
Brassicas (collards, kale, cabbage, kohlrabi, etc.) dominate the winter garden at the ranch, so the chard is a welcome splash of color in the otherwise modest, muted, slow-growing sea of large-leafed plants of the
cabbage family
. The only question it ever posed to me, in fact, is why it’s called Swiss chard.
What family is Swiss chard in?
Swiss chard (Beta vulgaris L. var. cicla in the
Family Chenopodiaceae
) is a type of beet that does not produce an edible root.
Is Swiss chard in the spinach family?
Swiss chard is a leafy green vegetable in
the same family as beets and spinach
. … Swiss chard may go by other names like silverbeet, perpetual spinach, spinach beet, crab beet, bright lights, seakale beet, mangold, or even just as spinach in South Africa.
Is Swiss chard in the broccoli family?
Best Friends and Close Relatives
According to West Coast Seeds, chard also gets along exceptionally well with members of the
Brassicaceae family
, including cabbage (Brassica oleracea), Brussels sprouts (Brassica oleracea L. var. gemmifera) and broccoli (Brassica oleracea).
What can you not plant with Swiss chard?
Plants to Avoid
Chard is not a fan of most herbs with the exception of
mint
. These two make great garden buddies. Chard also shouldn’t be planted near potatoes, corn, cucumbers, or melons. All of these will either compete for soil nutrients or foster harmful pests.
What grows best with Swiss chard?
- Alliums. Alliums have at least two benefits as companion plants. …
- Annual Flowers. There are many types of annual flowers that would be excellent neighbors for Swiss chard. …
- Brassicas. Cabbage is widely cited in companion planting literature as a suitable buddy for chard. …
- Celery. …
- Herbs. …
- Legumes. …
- Lettuce.
Can you eat Swiss chard raw?
Swiss chard leaves can be eaten raw or cooked
. Raw Swiss chard is less bitter than cooked. A bunch of raw Swiss chard will cook to a much smaller amount. The stalks are thicker than the leaves so they take longer to cook.
How healthy is Swiss chard?
Swiss chard is a nutritional powerhouse — an
excellent source of vitamins K, A, and C
, as well as a good source of magnesium, potassium, iron, and dietary fiber.
Is Swiss chard a Superfood?
Swiss chard is an
excellent source of vitamin A and vitamin K
and a good source of vitamin C and magnesium. Swiss chard also contains the antioxidants beta-carotene, lutein, and zeaxanthin. Vitamin A plays a significant role in normal formation and maintenance of many organs including the heart, lungs and kidneys.
Which is better Swiss chard or spinach?
Spinach
comes out on top, compared to Swiss chard, in a number of nutritional components. Among them are calcium, with 1 cup of cooked spinach offering 24 percent DV compared to Swiss chard’s 10 percent. … Spinach also provides more riboflavin, zinc and manganese and a small amount of omega-3 fat.
Which is healthier kale or Swiss chard?
As you can see in the chart above, kale does exceed the other greens in vitamins A and C, but
Swiss chard
has 16 percent more iron than kale. … All four types of greens are also rich in many other nutrients, including manganese, folate, copper, choline, magnesium, potassium and vitamins E, K, B2 and B6.
Are Swiss chard stems poisonous?
The dark, leafy greens have optimal health benefits and are packed with nutrition. The taste of the raw leaves is slightly bitter, which is due to the high level of oxalic acid in them, and that’s where the concern lies regarding
toxicity
. Just eat them in moderation, and you won’t have a problem.
Does Swiss chard like full sun?
Swiss chard prefers
rich, well-drained soil in full sun or light shade
. In the North, sow from early spring to midsummer for a fall crop; in the South sow in fall to spring. Sow the seeds 1/2 inch deep in rows spaced 18 inches apart.
Can I plant kale and Swiss chard together?
Both kale (Brassica oleracea) and chard (Beta vulgaris var. cicla) are biennial cool-weather crops that grow well in pots all year round except for the hottest part of summer, but chard tolerates the heat better than kale. …
You can plant them together in a large planter or separate them into individual pots
.
Can you plant spinach and chard together?
You can direct seed both spinach and Swiss chard
. You can also transplant Swiss chard. Spinach is day length sensitive, while chard is not. Spinach and Swiss chard can grow new leaves after the first harvest, especially if you harvest individual leaves at the “baby” stage, so multiple harvests are possible.
