Vegetables Produce Facts English
Spinach
Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality
![]() Department of Plant Sciences, University of California, Davis
Maturity & Quality
Maturity Indices Spinach is selected for size and maximal recovery of clean leaves that are mid-maturity to young. Older and yellowing leaves are avoided when making the harvest cut. Generally 3-4 weeks of re-growth are required before a second harvest will yield adequate volume. Spinach, whether bunched or as leaves, should be uniformly green (generally not yellow-green), fully turgid, fairly clean, and free from serious damage. For bunched spinach, roots should be trimmed short to grade standards and petioles should be predominantly shorter than the leaf blade.
Temperature & Controlled Atmosphere
Optimum Temperature 0°C (32°F) Optimum Relative Humidity 95-98%
To calculate heat production, multiply ml CO2/kg·hr by 440 to get BTU/ton/day or by 122 to get kcal/metric ton /day. Rates of Ethylene Production
Spinach is highly sensitive to exogenous ethylene. Accelerated yellowing will result from low levels of ethylene during distribution and short-term storage. Do not mix loads such as apples, melons and tomatoes with spinach. Atmospheres of 7-10% O2 and 5-10% CO2 offer moderate benefit to spinach by delaying yellowing. Spinach is tolerant to higher CO2 concentration but no increase in benefits has been observed. Package film for prewashed spinach leaves is selected to maintain 1-3% O2 and 8-10% CO2.
Disorders
Physiological and Physical Disorders
Date
May 1998 |
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How to Cite
Author(s) names. Initial publication or update date (located at the top). Title. Link to the specific Produce Fact Sheet webpage (Accessed date)
Example: Cantwell, M. and T. Suslow. 2002. Lettuce, Crisphead: Recommendations for Maintaining Postharvest Quality.
http://ucanr.edu/sites/Postharvest_Technology_Center_/Commodity_Resources/Fact_Sheets/Datastores/Vegetables_English/?uid=19&ds=799 (Accessed January 18, 2014).