General Description/History

• Related to beetroot and spinach
• Glossy dark green leaves
• White veins
• Thick fleshy white stems
• Grown for its leaves

Select silverbeet with fresh, dark green, crisp leaves and stalks. Avoid leaves which are wilted or scarred.

Trim and remove stalks. Wash leaves and slice. Use in stir-fries, steamed, pureed, combined in quiches, pies or filo parcels.

Silverbeet is either raised as seedlings or directly sown. Silverbeet needs to be grown quickly with regular watering and generous fertilising. Silverbeet prefers cool temperatures, but it can tolerate high temperatures better than spinach can. High temperatures will slow down leaf production.

Silverbeet is closely related to the beetroot. It is basically a beet without a bottom. Silverbeet has been popular even before the days of the Roman Empire and originated in Europe around the Mediterranean.

Nutritional Value

A good source of dietary fibre, folic acid, and vitamin C. Contains vitamin B6 and riboflavin and is low in sodium. 65kj/100g 009.

Storage/Handling

0°C and 90 -100% relative humidity.

Consumer Storage: Cut off a large section of white stalk, and store stalks and leaves in an airtight plastic bag in the refrigerator crisper.

Season: Summer,Autumn,Winter,Spring

Botanical Name: Beta vulgaris (Chenopodiaceae)

Alternative Names: Swiss Chard

Availablity: January,February,March,April,May,June,July,August,September,October,November,December

Growing Areas: 

QLD – Brisbane, Lockyer Valley, Redland Bay, Stanthorpe
NSW – Camden, Dareton, Gosford, Hunter Valley, Windsor
VIC – Melbourne Metropolitan Area
SA – Adelaide Hills, Adelaide Plains
WA – Perth Metropolitan Outer Areas
NT – Darwin, Katherine