THREE CHEERS CHARD! FOR

Easy to grow, tasty on your plate... chard is a seriously undervalued veg, says Monty Don – and he has all the tips for growing it

Earlier this summer I made a filming trip to Croatia as part of the new series Monty Don’s Adriatic Gardens, which will be shown in the new year. I had never been to Croatia before and found it beautiful and fascinating, but there was one unique feature that particularly intrigued me. Every restaurant

I ate in (and when you are away filming you eat three meals a day either in a restaurant or on the hoof) featured chard more prominently than any other vegetable. Gradually I noticed that every single garden that grew any vegetables at all also gave pride of place to a few rows of chard. Chard, it seems, is a Croatian staple.

I like chard very much and always grow and eat it myself with enthusiasm, but perhaps not with the same devotion that every Croatian seems to regard as completely normal. I suspect that we in the UK undervalue it as a vegetable, and perhaps we should grow more.

For a start, it is very accommodating and easy to grow. It lasts a long time in the ground, is almost impervious to both drought or freezing cold, and will regrow two or even three times before trying to ‘bolt’ or develop a flowering stem. I make a first sowing in March but a second now will ensure a continuous supply through autumn, winter and beyond. The seeds can be sown direct but I prefer to sow them in plugs, thinning them to one seedling per unit, growing them on and hardening off before planting them out spaced 23cm apart. They make large plants so there is no advantage in planting them any closer together, and directly sown seeds should be thinned accordingly.

Chard does best in rich but well-drained soil. Being biennials they will only go to seed in the first growing season if they are distressed, so the consistency of water supply is as important as the quantity. If some do start to bolt, then I cut the central stem down to the ground and give them a soak.

Although chard is drought-resistant, the hotter and drier the weather, the greater the ratio of stalk to green leaf. You can either harvest these leaves by taking a few from each plant or, as I prefer to do, cut the whole thing flush with the ground, which provokes a fresh growth of tender young leaves.

Chard is a member of the beet family and

thus related to spinach and beetroot – the leaves do look like monstrously enlarged versions of those belonging to both its cousins. The leaves are like a slightly coarser spinach and, when combined with any combination of eggs, cream, cheese, anchovy, garlic or pine nuts, taste exceptionally good.

Like beetroot, spinach, sorrel and rhubarb, the leaves contain oxalic acid, which is slightly toxic in large quantities so a greedy helping of chard combined with beetroot and then followed by over-generous quantities of rhubarb are likely to provoke an upset tummy. However, in sensible moderation it does no harm at all.

The stems are celery-like in texture if not in taste, which is delicate, subtle and delicious in a creamy sauce.

Swiss chard (which in fact has no connection to Switzerland at all) is, to my mind, superior in taste to all other variations. ‘Ruby Red’ and ‘Bright Yellow’ are great to look at with their vibrantly coloured stems, while those of ‘Bright Lights’ come in a dazzling range of hues. All these varieties are beautiful enough to deserve a place in any flower border.

Monty with some of his chard crop