How to Grow Oraches

By the SoilCommander Editorial Team, under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder · · How we check our facts

On this page
  1. Orach (Atriplex hortensis)
  2. Quick Facts
  3. Soil & Growing Conditions
  4. Growth Stages
  5. Harvest & Storage
  6. Orach, a Spinach Substitute
  7. Plan your Oraches planting
  8. What the research guides add
  9. Growing Orach in another region
  10. Sources
  11. Frequently Asked Questions

Oraches (Atriplex hortensis) — annual.

Core growing advice on this page is checked against named horticultural sources — see References.

Orach (Atriplex hortensis)

A mature orach leaf in autumn colours — “Atriplex hortensis sl5” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

5 sources cited · Verified

Quick Facts

A mature orach leaf in autumn colours — “Atriplex hortensis sl5” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Atriplex hortensis sl5” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Factor Value
Soil pH 6.5 - 7.5
Optimal growing temp 12-28°C
Drainage Well-drained
Lifecycle annual
Edible parts leaves

Soil & Growing Conditions

A cluster of young orach seedlings growing in soil — “Atriplex hortensis var. rubra 2023-04-30 4050” by Salicyna is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Atriplex hortensis var. rubra 2023-04-30 4050” by Salicyna is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Soil pH range

6.5 7.5

Span reflects genuine variation between the cited authorities, not a single agreed figure.

Growth Stages

A young pink-purple orach seedling — “Atriplex hortensis var. rubra 2023-05-07 4583” by Salicyna is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Atriplex hortensis var. rubra 2023-05-07 4583” by Salicyna is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Stage BBCH Notes
Sowing 0 Direct sow 2-3 weeks before the last frost date, seeds 1/4-1/2in deep; germinates in 7-14 days (Seasonal Gardening).
Rapid leaf growth 3 Grows rapidly to 3-4ft; water freely during dry weather to avoid bolting (Seasonal Gardening, RHS).
Flowering 6 Small, insignificant clusters of reddish-green flowers borne in summer (RHS).
Harvest and cut-back 8 Harvest young, tender leaves as a spinach substitute; cut back after flowering to prolong leaf production (RHS, Seasonal Gardening).

Harvest & Storage

Close-up of orach leaf texture with a scale bar — “Atriplex hortensis sl25” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
“Atriplex hortensis sl25” by Stefan.lefnaer is licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

When to pick: RHS: sow successionally to harvest leaves throughout the growing season; water freely in dry weather to prevent bolting. UMD: grows best in spring and fall but "can tolerate summer heat" better than true spinach.

Storage

Best used fresh

Plan your Oraches planting

Timing for Oraches follows soil temperature and frost, not the calendar date. The Global vegetable planting calendar explains the method. To work out where it fits in your beds, sketch your plot in the free Garden Layout Planner.

What the research guides add

Red orache (Atriplex hortensis var. rubra) seedlings
Red orache (Atriplex hortensis var. rubra) seedlings. Photo by Salicyna, CC BY-SA 4.0.

Orache is a leafy annual that behaves like spinach, and the RHS gives one instruction that matters most: do not let it dry out.

  • Grow it in well-drained soil in full sun and water freely in dry weather to prevent bolting. (RHS)
  • Propagate by seed, following the RHS advice on sowing vegetable seeds. (RHS)
  • It is a tall, columnar annual, grown in cottage and informal gardens and flower borders as well as for the leaves, and is generally free of pests and diseases. (RHS)

Sources for this section

Section researched and checked on 25 October 2026 by the SoilCommander Editorial Team. How we check facts: editorial policy.

Growing Orach in another region

Sowing dates, frost timing and local advice differ by country. Use the guide for where you garden.

Sources

These 2 sources are specific to this region. The full list of 5 sources behind this guide (FAO EcoCrop, GBIF, Royal Horticultural Society and others) is in the references of our UK guide to oraches; they describe the plant itself, which is the same wherever it grows.

Frequently Asked Questions

What soil pH do oraches need?

A pH of about 6.5–7.5. That span reflects genuine variation between the authorities we cite rather than a single agreed figure — the References section lists each source's exact range.

Plan next season before the problems start

This page gives you the thresholds; the planner turns them into your own calendar. It works from what you can observe and measure in your garden rather than from dates written for somebody else’s latitude.

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SoilCommander Editorial Team — under the guidance of Nitin Sharma, Co-Founder

Every growing guide is checked against RHS, USDA Cooperative Extension, and other named horticultural authorities before publishing. How we check our facts.

How this guide is put together

The growing data on this page — sowing windows, pests, diseases, soil and site requirements — comes from named horticultural sources, listed in References below, checked against international horticultural research and extension sources. An automated pipeline assembles that verified data into the page you're reading: it selects which facts to lead with and builds the surrounding prose and layout. It does not invent a date, a source or a number — where a verified value for a field isn't available, the page leaves it out rather than guessing. A person reviews and publishes each page; nothing goes live unverified.

Vegetable Growing Guides

Last verified 2026-10-25

Related guides

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