Red Malabar Spinach Seeds - (Basella rubra)

Red Malabar Spinach – Heat-Loving Leafy Green

This distinctive and versatile plant is not a true spinach, but offers a superb heat-tolerant alternative for summer greens. A spinach substitute that thrives in 90°F heat might sound like a fantasy, but generations of gardeners know it as Red Malabar Spinach. With this vine, you can have a continuous harvest of crisp, succulent leaves with notes of citrus and pepper, even if you've all but given up on growing fresh greens in the peak of summer.

Thus, you are growing more than just a simple vegetable; it's a plant that shows beauty and utility can coexist powerfully. Its vivid ruby-red vines create a breathtaking vertical display while the leaves provide a constant source of food. It's an heirloom whose many names read like a passport stamped with cultures, passed along through a living chain of shared knowledge from gardener to gardener. This is your invitation to grow elegant toughness and delicious resourcefulness on your trellis this season.

Details

Red Malabar Spinach is a vigorous, herbaceous, twining vine. Grown as a tender annual in most US climates, though a perennial in USDA Zones 9-11, its vines can quickly reach lengths of 6 to 10 feet in a single season. This impressive growth requires sturdy support, such as a trellis, fence, or arbor, for both easy harvesting and to best display its ornamental beauty.

Its most striking feature is the contrast between its thick, fleshy, glossy dark green leaves and its vivid reddish-purple succulent stems. The leaves are typically oval to heart-shaped, 2 to 4 inches long, with a smooth texture, arranged alternately along the stems. Young leaves are bright green, often with reddish veins. The plant produces small, often inconspicuous white, pink, or reddish flowers on short spikes, which mature into small, fleshy, purplish-black berries. The juice from these berries is a potent natural dye. When raw, Red Malabar Spinach leaves are juicy and crisp, with notes of citrus and a slight peppery tinge of arugula. Cooked, the flavor becomes milder and more akin to traditional spinach, with better texture.

Other names include basella, Ceylon spinach, climbing spinach, Surinam spinach, Indian spinach, slippery vegetable, Malabar nightshade, vine spinach, and vine vegetable.

History

Long before it graced modern gardens, the vibrant berries of Red Malabar Spinach served a surprising role in ancient China: as a natural ink for official seals and as a cosmetic rouge. This is just one chapter in the plant's remarkable story, which originates in the tropical regions of South Asia, with deep roots on the Indian subcontinent and in New Guinea. Its common name, 'Malabar Spinach,' directly links it to the Malabar Coast of India, and for centuries, it has been a staple leafy vegetable across Asia and Africa. The 'Rubra' form, characterized by its red stems, is widely considered a naturally occurring variant or a long-selected cultivar of Basella alba. It has been cultivated for centuries across Asia and Africa as a staple leafy vegetable. Its journey to Western gardens is more recent, through migration and trade, Basella spread to the Americas, and parts of Europe, becoming naturalized in some areas.

Uses

Red Malabar Spinach is a dual-purpose star, equally valued for its contributions in the kitchen and its striking ornamental beauty.

• In the Kitchen: The young leaves and tender stem tips are the edible parts. When eaten raw in salads, the succulent leaves have a juicy, crisp texture with pleasant notes of citrus and pepper. When cooked, the flavor becomes milder and more spinach-like, and it holds its shape far better than true spinach. A key culinary quality is the silky texture it develops when cooked, similar to okra, which makes it an excellent natural thickener for soups, stews, and curries.
• As an Ornamental: The vibrant contrast between the ruby-red stems and the deep green leaves makes this vine a stunning addition to the garden. It is a true "edible ornamental" that can be trained up a trellis, fence, or arbor to create a beautiful, productive screen.
• Natural Dye: The juice from the ripe, dark purple berries creates a powerful natural dye that can be used as a food coloring for jellies and pastries or for craft projects.

Companion Planting

As a vigorous vertical element, Red Malabar Spinach can be thoughtfully integrated into a diverse garden. Its dense foliage can provide welcome afternoon shade for lower-growing, less heat-tolerant crops like lettuce if grown upwards on a trellis. Interplanting with aromatic herbs and flowers like marigolds can help manage general garden pests like root-knot nematodes and attract pollinators. 

Planting and Growing Tips

Red Malabar Spinach is a tropical plant that thrives in heat, making it an exceptional choice for summer production when other greens fail. It performs best in full sun (6+ hours) and requires fertile, well-drained, loamy soil that is kept consistently moist, benefiting from a thick layer of mulch. In very hot climates, some afternoon shade can be beneficial in preventing stress or premature flowering. Consistent watering, not just heat, is the secret to preventing bitterness and prolonging harvest.

To get a jump-start on your summer harvest and ensure great germination, try this simple preparation step: scarify the seeds (gently nick or rub the hard seed coat with a file or sandpaper) and then soak them in water overnight before planting.

Start seeds indoors 6-8 weeks before your last frost for an early start, or sow directly outdoors after all danger of frost has passed and the soil is very warm (ideally 65-85°F). Plant seeds about 1/4 inch deep and space or thin plants to about 12 inches apart. Provide a sturdy trellis, fence, or other support at planting time for the vigorous vines to climb.

This plant is a relatively heavy feeder; amending the soil with rich compost before planting and providing supplemental feedings with a balanced organic fertilizer or fish emulsion during the peak growing season will encourage lush, leafy growth. It is also an excellent candidate for container gardening, provided the pot is large (at least 10-12 gallons) with good drainage to support its size, trellising, and watering needs.

Harvesting Tips

Begin harvesting young leaves and the tender, succulent tips of the vines once the plant is well-established and climbing vigorously. Regular harvesting is a "cut-and-come-again" process that encourages the plant to become bushier and produce more edible growth.

Using scissors or your fingers, snip individual leaves or the top 4-8 inches of the tender shoots. For the best flavor and texture, harvest leaves when they are young. To ensure the plant remains productive, avoid removing more than one-third of its total foliage at one time. Harvest can continue all summer and fall until the first frost. If you wish to use the berries for dye, wait until they are plump and have ripened to a deep purplish-black. 

Learn More

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