12 Leafy Vegetables

LEAFY VEGETABLES
Introduction
Common Name Scientific Name Family
1. Broad Leaf Mustard (BLM) Brassica juncea var. rugosa Cruciferae
2. Spinach Spinaceae oleraceae L. Chenopodiaceae
3. Cress Lepidium sativum Chenopodiaceae
4. Swiss Chard Beta vulgaris var. Cicla Chenopodiaceae
5. Lettuce Lactuca sativa L. Compositae
6. Amaranthus Amaranthus sp. Amaranthaceae
Introduction
• Mostly
leaves and whole plant is
consumable.
• Good source of minerals and vitamins.
• Balanced dietrequire 125g leafy
vegetables daily.
• Somewild leafy vegetables are being
consumed in Nepal.
• Easyto propagate, cheap, fast growing
and can be cooked quickly.
Botany
• Broad Leaf Mustard (BLM)
• Origin: Central to eastern Asia
✓ Herbaceous annual
✓ Yellow flowers, produced in cluster of 2-10
✓ Leaves are lobed, large
✓Produce bunch of leaves from crown region
✓Highly cross pollinated
• Spinach
• Origin: South west Asia (Persia)
• Herbaceous annual; biennial for seed production
• Produce bunch of leaves from crown region
• Flower arise from centre axis
• Flowers
may be staminate, pistilate or
hermaphrodite
• Highly cross pollinated
• Cress
• Herbaceous annual with edible leaves &
shoot
• Fastgrowing plant with many small narrow
oval leaves
• Flowers are small: Pink & White
• Can grow up to 60 cm.
• Cross pollinated.
• Swiss Chard
• Herbaceous annual plant
• Erectgrowth habit with large thick
petioled leaves
• Rosette leaves arise from base
• Can reach up to 30-40 cm
• Cross pollinated
Varieties
• Cress: Kathmandu Local
• Swiss chard: Ford Hook Giant (FHG)
Broad leaf mustard: Khumal Broad Leaf, Marpha Broad Leaf, Khumal Red
Leaf, Tankhuwa Rayo, Red Giant, Mike Purple Giant
Spinach: Virginia Savoy, Early Smooth Leaf, Patane Local, All
Green, Pusa Jyoti
Climate & Soil
• Winter seasonal vegetable, can be grown from terai to high hills
• Can tolerate frost and snow
• Cool and short day condition improves quality of leaf
• Warm temp. cause early bolting and bitterness
• Swiss chard can be grown in both summer and winter
• Almost all type of soil, loam with high organic matter is most suitable
• Spinach: Alkaline soil, other crops grow well in slightly acidic to neutral soil.
Growing season
• BLM: Hills - March-June;
Mid hills - August-November
Terai - November-January
• Cress: hills – All round the year

Terai – Winter season
• Spinach: All round the year in hills and during winter in Terai.
• Swiss chard: Mid and high hills – all round the year, Terai – Winter
Nursery bed preparation
• Field ploughed 3-4 times, levelling and make
it fine
• Raised beds are used for seedling raising
• Line sowing in raised bed 5-10 cm
• Seedling become ready after 3-4 weeks & 3-
4 leaf stage
• Seed rate:
• BLM: 600 g/ha
• Cress: 8-9 kg/ha
• Spinach: 35-45 kg/ha
• Swiss chard: 2 kg/ha
Field preparation & transplanting
• 2-3 times ploughing and levelling of
land
• For winter season flat beds are
prepared while for rainy season crop
ridge or raised bed are used
• Transplanting is done during evening
time
• Spacing
• BLM: 30 x 10-15 cm
• Cress: 20 x 2-3 cm
• Spinach: 30 x 10-12 cm
• Swiss chard: 45 x 30 cm
Manure & Fertilizers
• BLM: FYM-20 ton/ha, 120:80:60 kg NPK/ha
• Cress: FYM-20 ton/ha; 160:80:60 kg NPK/ha; Spinach: Same as cress
• Swiss chard: FYM – 15-20 ton/ha; 160:80:100 kg NPK/ha
• Apply
FYM during field preparation, All P, K & half N during sowing time.
Remaining N used in two split doses; 25-30 & 45-50 days after transplanting.
Intercultural operations
• Irrigation: Light irrigation
regularly during initial
establishment phase, no
irrigation needed during rainy
season
• Weeding
• Hoeing
Harvesting
• Leaves becomes ready after 30-60 days after
transplanting.
• Leavesshould be harvested without damaging
by using sharp tool
• Tender leaves are harvested regularly 4-5 days
interval.
• Delay harvesting cause low yield
• Yield:
• BLM: 30-40 ton/ha

• Cress
• Whole plant of cress is
harvested after 25-30 days of
sowing/transplanting
• Yield: 6-10 ton/ha
• Spinach
• 2-7
cuttings can be obtained from fully
matured spinach
• Start to harvest after about one month.
• Yield: 16-20 ton/ha
• Swiss chard
• Ready after45-50 days of
transplanting
• Multiple harvesting of leaves
• Yield: 30-40 tons/ha
Seed production
• Seed to seed method
• Normal planting by following proper agronomical practices
• Rouging and selection should be done after flower initiation
• Highly cross pollinated
• Isolation distance: 1600m for foundation & 1000m for certified seed
• Harvest seed when pod turns brown and start to dry, rattling sound produced by
seeds inside pod
• Threshing is done by using sticks and then cleaning and storage
• Seed yield: 500-600 kg/ha
Diseases of leafy vegetables
• Damping off (Pythium sp.)
• Cercospora leaf spot (Cercospora
beticola)
• Downy mildew (Perosnospora
spinaceae)
• White rust (Albugo candida)
• Powdery mildew
• Mosaic virus
Insects of leafy vegetables
• Aphids (Aphis sp.)
• Leafeating caterpillar (Laphygma
exigua)
• Stink Bugs
• White fly
• Mustard saw fly

12 Leafy Vegetables

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LEAFY VEGETABLES

• Cress: hills – All round the year

• Cress: FYM-20 ton/ha; 160:80:60 kg NPK/ha; Spinach: Same as cress

• Swiss chard: FYM – 15-20 ton/ha; 160:80:100 kg NPK/ha

• BLM: 30-40 ton/ha

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