Vegetable / Shoulder season

Bright Lights Swiss Chard

Long-season leafy crop for containers and visible beds.

Mild beet-family greens with colorful stems.

Seed spacing and maturity

Days to maturity
55
Germination temperature
50-85F
Seed depth
0.5 inches
Spacing
12 inches
Row spacing
18 inches
Start method
Either

Frost-date timing

Indoor start
4 weeks before last frost
Direct sow
14 days before last frost
Transplant
on last frost
Fall planting
9 weeks before first frost
Succession interval
repeat every 28 days

Action plan

Can I plant this now?
Use your local last-frost, first-frost, and soil-temperature checks before treating this crop as plantable today.
Start indoors or direct sow?
Direct sow or transplant depending on your soil warmth, bed readiness, and frost-risk plan.
How much space?
12 inches in-row spacing, 18 inches between rows, and 0.5 inch seed depth.
Best companions?
Use crop-family rotation first, then pair with compatible timing, spacing, and canopy size rather than relying on a simple companion chart.
Common failure modes?
Letting plants dry out reduces tenderness. Even moisture improves leaf quality. Fertile soil with good drainage.

Growing profile

Sun
Full sun to part shade
Water
Even moisture improves leaf quality.
Soil
Fertile soil with good drainage.
Watch
Letting plants dry out reduces tenderness.
  • greens
  • containers
  • heat-tolerant
  • cut-and-come-again

Browse context

Related varieties

Source: UMN planting the vegetable garden