Years ago, even before I started my business, Rooted Garden, I read a book by Ivette Soler called The Edible Front Yard: The Mow-Less, Grow-More Plan for a Beautiful, Bountiful Garden. The author lists vegetables that look particularly striking in front yard gardens (I think she called them showstoppers or something like that), and guess what. 

Swiss chard was on that list. 

Ever since, I’ve grown Swiss chard in all my gardens, I’ve put it in all of my clients’ gardens, and I’ve even made it a point to put it near the front of the raised beds to add beauty and color. The jewel-toned stems of Swiss chard are just as pretty, at least in my opinion, as flowers in a garden.

Not only is Swiss chard beautiful, it’s also delicious and nutritious. It’s in the same family (the Goosefoot or Amaranth family) as beets and spinach, but Swiss chard is unique in the size of its leaves. And the leaves are the part we want to eat. But wait! We can also eat the stems (they’re a bit like celery), so we can actually enjoy all parts of this nutrient-dense plant. 

And today, I’m going to tell you four tips for growing huge leaves on your Swiss chard plants. 

tip number one: start with the right setup

Raised bed

I’ve grown Swiss chard several different ways and found the most success in raised beds. Actually, not just raised beds, but tall raised beds. My attempts to grow Swiss chard in the one-foot-tall raised bed in my backyard were nowhere near as productive as the chard I consistently grow in my two-foot-tall beds on the side of my house. 

Why, you might ask. The rabbits. Even though I did have an issue with a mama bunny getting into my taller beds this spring, it seems overall that rabbits take Swiss chard in a lower structure as way more of a free-for-all buffet. So, start with a high-up space. 

Great soil

Swiss chard loves a really rich soil. In fact, you could probably even grow it in 100% compost if you wanted to. 

tip number two: grow from seeds, not transplants

I find the most success with Swiss chard when I grow it from seed instead of starting it indoors and transplanting it to the garden later. You can even sow your seeds before the threat of frost has passed; your seedling might get a bit of damage if there’s heavy frost on the leaves, but they’ll still grow. 

tip number three: keep your plants clean and well-pruned

I sometimes find holes on the insides of my leaves, and that’s how I know that some little caterpillar or hoverfly or their other annoying pest friends have been munching on my leaves. When you see those holes, don’t let those leaves keep hanging out in the garden. Prune the bad leaves immediately. 

You know those bad leaves that you just pruned? Well, those are completely edible. Give them a good wash and enjoy them raw or cooked in a dish. 

Don’t be afraid of a little pest damage. Just like with kale, nibbled Swiss chard leaves are not only perfectly harmless, they’re actually more nutritious because the plant sends lots of antioxidants to leaves affected by pests to help them fight off the attack. (Reason number 100 why we should all eat homegrown and organic.)

If any of your leaves are touching the soil, make sure to harvest those too so they don’t give the pests a nice little bridge to your plants. 

tip number four: harvest and enjoy often

About once a week, I harvest from my established Swiss chard plant, starting at the lower part of the plant and cutting away the older leaves. I take at least two leaves from every single plant. This signals to the plant to keep producing new, healthy leaves. 

Swiss chard plants grow from the center, so baby leaves will form at the heart of the plant, and those leaves will be the healthiest ones. It’s the least healthy leaves on the outside that will get most impacted by pests, disease, and bad weather. 

By following these tips, your plant will produce giant leaves and survive for more than a year in temperate climates. 

If you haven’t grown your own Swiss chard yet, you’ve got to try it. I'm talking all about salad gardening in this week's workshop, and Swiss chard is included. Join me this Thursday at 12:30 pm CST to learn four steps to grow your own salad this fall. Sign up here. Hope to see you there!