Silverado Chard is a reliable cool-season green that reaches harvest in just 60 days, delivering tender leaves perfect for spring and fall gardening. This frost-tolerant cultivar grows to a compact 18 inches tall and spreads 12 to 18 inches wide, making it efficient in small spaces. Plant it in full sun with moderate water and slightly acidic to neutral soil (pH 6.0 to 7.5), and you'll have continuous harvests of outer leaves to keep the plant producing all season long.
Full Sun
Moderate
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18in H x 18in W
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High
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Silverado Chard's real strength lies in its speed and cold hardiness. You can start seeds indoors and have transplants ready to move outdoors just 2 weeks before your last frost date, giving you an early harvest window that most gardeners miss. The leaves respond beautifully to successive harvesting of the outer growth, rewarding attentive picking with weeks of productivity from a single planting.
Silverado Chard leaves are harvested and used as a cooked or raw green, depending on their age and your preference. Young leaves work well in salads or sautéed quickly with garlic and olive oil, while larger outer leaves are excellent for wilting into soups, grain bowls, or traditional chard preparations. The tender petioles and midribs are edible and develop a pleasant, slightly sweet character when cooked.
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Start seeds indoors 6 to 8 weeks before your last spring frost date. This gives you healthy transplants ready to move outdoors at the right moment for a late spring harvest.
Transplant seedlings outdoors 2 weeks before your last frost date. Silverado is frost-tolerant, so it can handle light frosts and cool conditions. Space transplants 18 inches apart in rows 18 inches apart, planting at the same depth they were growing in their containers.
Begin harvesting outer leaves once the plant reaches a usable size, typically around 60 days after transplanting. Pinch or cut the larger, outer leaves first, working toward the center; this technique encourages the plant to keep producing fresh growth from the crown. Harvest in the morning when leaves are crisp and full of moisture. Regular harvesting of outer leaves also helps keep the plant disease-free by improving air circulation and removing older, potentially stressed foliage.
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