Spinach

Scientific

Spinacia oleracea (family Amaranthaceae, formerly Chenopodiaceae) is an annual cool-season crop that bolts and goes bitter in heat. Two principal leaf-form groups: savoy (crinkled leaves) and flat-leaf (smoother, easier to wash mechanically — now dominant in commercial production).

The leaves contain significant oxalates, which bind dietary calcium and iron and reduce their bioavailability. The “Popeye eats spinach for iron strength” cultural narrative — based on a 19th-century decimal-point error in nutritional reporting that overstated iron content tenfold — partly accounts for spinach’s mid-20th-century health-vegetable status.

Cultural and historical

Persian origin, ~2,000 years ago. Carried east into China by the 7th century (where it was called “Persian vegetable”). Carried west into Europe via Arab agriculture in medieval Spain; spread north through medieval kitchens. By the 16th century spinach was a standard European garden vegetable; Catherine de Medici is said to have loved it so much that spinach dishes are still called “à la florentine” in her honor.

Global production

Top producers: China (~90% of global output), USA, Japan, Turkey, Indonesia. China’s overwhelming share reflects both the species’ East Asian cultivation tradition and its scale in modern Chinese vegetable agriculture.

See also

Auto-generated from this entry’s typed relations: frontmatter, grouped by relation type so the editorial signal isn’t flattened.

• Shares approach with: [[walnut]] · [[saffron]] · [[rose]] · [[pomegranate]] · [[peach]] · [[lettuce]]
• Member of: [[plants]]
• Produced by: [[cnpo-aline-r-madruga-grupo-ecologico-campina-verde-rosemeri-rodrigues-madruga-de-souz]] · [[cnpo-sitio-da-boa-esperanca-e-sitio-campo-limpo-rio-claro-sp]]

Sources

• FAO Crop Statistics
• Wikipedia — Spinach

A plant entry in the 0mn1.one [[directory]].