chard

When to sow chard?

Botanical name
Beta vulgaris cicla
Family
Amaranthaceae

Chard is sown outdoors from April to July, 2.5 cm deep. It germinates in 10 to 12 days. It is harvested from May to March.

Chard is a biennial plant. The edible parts are the stems and leaves.

chard
Photo: Lufa Farms · CC BY-SA 2.0

Chard through the year

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Indoor sowing
Transplanting
Outdoor sowing
Harvest
15913172125293337414549
  • indoor sowing
  • transplanting
  • outdoor sowing
  • harvest

In short

Outdoor sowing
from April to July
weeks 14 to 31
the window opens six weeks before the last frost
Indoor sowing
from February to April
weeks 9 to 14
the window opens eleven weeks before the last frost
Transplanting
from April to July
weeks 16 to 31
the window opens four weeks before the last frost
Sowing depth
2.5 cm
Spacing in the row
5 to 30 cm
45 cm between rows
Germination
10 to 12 days
Germination temperature
10 °C
Days to maturity
30 to 60 days
Harvest
from May to March
week 22 to week 12 of the next year
Repeat sowing
every 21 days

The last frost is not on the same day everywhere, so the recorded weeks are a guide and not a date.

Growing conditions

🪨
Soil
loamy
🧪
pH
6 to 6.5
☀️
Sun
full sun
💧
Water
moderate water
❄️
Frost
overwinters outdoors
🌱
Nutrients
a moderate feeder
🔁
Crop rotation
no sooner than the fourth year
📏
Height
30 to 60 cm

Pests and diseases

Listed here is every problem for which the sources name this plant as a host. The problems are not listed in order of how common they are.

Leaf miners

pest
Signs
Pale winding trails or irregular blotches just under the skin of the leaf, with the larvae inside them. The blotches are broad and the leaf is no longer for the plate.
Prevention
Cover the bed with fleece before the flies start laying their eggs in early spring. Remove the weeds of the same family, on which the pest keeps going between crops.
What to do
Squeeze the attacked leaves between your fingers so that the larvae in them die, or remove and destroy the leaves, which is the main measure. Do not spray, because that also destroys the parasitoids that keep the miners in check.

Slugs and snails

pest
Signs
Holes appear in the middle of the leaf rather than along the edge, young plants are eaten down to the ground, and there are slimy trails in the morning. On low-growing fruit there are gnawed pits.
Prevention
Remove the hiding places beside the bed: boards, stones, dense weeds. Water in the morning and not in the evening, so that the night is dry. Spread a band of coarse sand or gravel around the bed. Cover young plants with fleece. Pick them off at night, which is still the most effective measure.

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Related plants

The plants below are in the same botanical family (Amaranthaceae).

Sources about the plant: Alabama Cooperative Extension System, BUND Region Hannover, Clemson Cooperative Extension, GBIF Backbone Taxonomy, KGZS, NC State Extension Plant Toolbox, Royal Horticultural Society, Semenarna Ljubljana, Utah State University Extension, Wikidata. Checked between 14 and 28 August 2026. The problem descriptions also draw on: University of Maryland Extension, University of Wisconsin-Madison Division of Extension.