{
  "schema_version": 1,
  "record_type": "plant",
  "slug": "spinach",
  "common_name": "Spinach",
  "botanical_name": "Spinacia oleracea",
  "family": "Amaranthaceae",
  "summary": "Spinach is a fast cool-season leaf crop best grown in short successions before heat and long days trigger flowering.",
  "categories": [
    "leaf vegetable",
    "salad crop",
    "cool-season crop"
  ],
  "growth_habits": [
    "rosette"
  ],
  "lifecycle": "Annual",
  "difficulty": "Easy",
  "requirements": {
    "light": {
      "minimum_direct_sun_hours": 4,
      "preferred_direct_sun_hours": 6
    },
    "soil_ph": {
      "minimum": 6.5,
      "maximum": 8.0
    },
    "container": {
      "minimum_volume_litres": 10,
      "minimum_diameter_cm": 30,
      "plants_per_container": 5
    },
    "spacing": {
      "minimum_cm": 10,
      "maximum_cm": 15
    },
    "planting_out": {
      "minimum_reliable_temperature_c": 5,
      "frost_tolerant": true,
      "label": "Sow outside",
      "note": "Spinach prefers cool soil and established plants tolerate light frost."
    },
    "harvest": {
      "typical_uk_months": [
        "March",
        "November"
      ]
    }
  },
  "sources": [
    {
      "id": "rhs-growing-spinach",
      "publisher": "Royal Horticultural Society",
      "url": "https://www.rhs.org.uk/vegetables/spinach/grow-your-own",
      "supports": [
        "sowing",
        "spacing",
        "containers",
        "watering",
        "harvest",
        "bolting"
      ]
    },
    {
      "id": "umn-growing-spinach",
      "publisher": "University of Minnesota Extension",
      "url": "https://extension.umn.edu/vegetables/growing-spinach-and-swiss-chard",
      "supports": [
        "soil_ph",
        "day_length",
        "watering",
        "harvest",
        "problems"
      ]
    }
  ]
}