How to Grow Chia
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| Fig.1 ~ Full grown chia plants in raised beds. Image by Lauren Kachel. |
Unfortunately, much of my most recent experience growing chia has not been very successful due to ineptitude and falling branches. So, in this article I will outline what not to do, what to do, and the benefits and risks of growing chia for yourself.
Ideal Growing Conditions
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| Fig. 2 ~ Short chia plant grown in the shade. It grew very slowly. Image by Lauren Kachel |
and requires at least 8 hours of full sun daily.(Carwood, 2023) Unfortunately, I planted my chia in an area that only gets around 4 hours of full sun daily, so my chia plants did not grow very well or fast. Thus, making sure that your chia plants are in a sunny location is necessary! Additionally, placing the plants in a sunny place will ensure that falling tree branches do not crush or break branches off of your plants. This was the unfortunate fate of my chia plants.
Chia should be planted at a spacing of at least 10cm(4in} in order for the plants to thrive. (Motis, 2011) The plants, once mature, can grow up to 5ft high and 3ft wide, so they need plenty of space.(Carwood, 2023) They prefer well drained, sandy to clay soil and are not affected much by pH.(Motis, 2011)(Carwood, 2023) The plants are fairly drought tolerant as well.(Carwood, 2023) I watered my plants well about every other day and they were happy. I do not remember ever seeing them wilt. They thrive in temperatures close to 75 degrees F and love humid conditions.(Carwood, 2023)
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| Fig. 3 ~ Leggy chia seedlings at the time of transplanting. Image by Lauren Kachel |
Propagation
I grew my Chia from seed and started them in a greenhouse. 2 seeds were planted per plug and then covered with a thin layer of soil. They were then thinned to one seedling per plug once they germinated. In the greenhouse, the plants were watered as soon as the topsoil dried out. After all of the seeds germinated and the first true leaves had formed, I moved the tray to our hoop house to acclimate the plants. After about 3 more weeks, I transplanted them to outdoor containers. Chia seeds can be direct seeded as well, and the mature plants will reseed themselves when grown outdoors and left to mature.(Motis, 2011) I do recommend starting chia in containers or trays.
Management
Although I transplanted my chia seedlings after 4 weeks, I would recommend cutting that time to 2 and a half to three weeks. Any longer than this, and the seedlings become leggy and tend not to grow well in the long run. Figure 3 shows my leggy chia seedlings after 4 weeks of growing in the trays. Additionally, after about 8 or 9 weeks of growth, the plants should be trimmed back to 1.25m or 4ft to allow the plant to bush out. After about 4 weeks of growth, I cut the tops off of my plants back to allow for branching. I would recommend waiting longer (8 or 9 weeks as mentioned above} than 4 weeks before trimming the plants back. This seemed to stress the plants and may have also been a factor in slowing their growth as well. After about another 2 or 3 weeks, I cut the tops of the branches to allow for even more branching out. This resulted in shorter plants with more branching.
At transplanting, I mixed in some compost as a nutrient source. As I noticed yellowing or lightening of the leaves I added a soluble fertilizer to the plants as a soil drench. After transplanting the seedlings, I watered the plants with a watering can every morning. After several weeks, depending on the amount of rain we were getting, I slowly decreased the frequency I watered them to every other day, once a week, and then completely rain fed. This has no impact in slowing growth or wilting.
Harvest
The chia plants should be left to mature in the field or in the containers or raised beds.(Motis, 2011) Once the seeds have formed fully but have not yet been released by the plant, the plants can be harvested and dried on a tarp in a location with full sun and kept out of the rain.(Motis, 2011) After the plants are dried, they can be threshed, or beat, against the inside of a bucket or barrel to remove the seeds.(Motis, 2011) The chaff or excess plant matter can then be removed from the seeds through winnowing.(Motis, 2011) Excess dried plant matter can be returned to the container, raised bed, or field for more organic matter.
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| Fig. 4 ~ Chia plant with no pest damage. Image by Lauren Kachel. |
Benefits of Growing Chia
As I mentioned earlier, chia has a tremendous amount of nutrients in it. But aside from nutrients, chia has many other benefits as well. One of these includes its potential ability to suppress weeds, especially when planted more densely as a cover crop in fields. (Motis, 2011) Additionally, chia is extremely resistant to pests. (Motis, 2011) This may be due to the oil that is contained in the plant and leaves. (Motis, 2011) As you can see in figure 4, there is no sign of insect damage at all. Another benefit is the ease of saving seeds. The seeds, if another crop will be planted again, are quite easy to save since the plants are self pollinating. (Motis, 2011) Seeds saved for planting or food can be saved for up to 3 years in a dry, cool location away from pests. (Motis, 2011)
Risks and other Growing Methods
Based on the many benefits of a chia in nutrition, weed suppression, and pest resistance, there may be fewer risks that a gardener or farmer might take in growing chia. However, if someone is worried about the risks or cost of growing chia, I would recommend trialing a small section of a field or growing only a few plants in the first growing season as a trial. Doing this would minimize initial risk in planting chia and increase experience with the crop to ensure future success maybe on a larger scale. Another potential risk of growing and consuming chia is its potential as a blood thinner.(Motis, 2011) Additionally, since the plants will reseed themselves if they are left to mature completely in the field or garden, it is vital that the chia plants are harvested before releasing their seed. This will prevent the chia from becoming a weed in the garden or field and maximize the harvest of chia seeds.(Motis, 2011)
In terms of growing methods and scale of growing chia, it can be grown in a home garden in containers or raised beds, or in a field. In the field, chia is often grown as a cover crop and is capable of weed suppression as mentioned above. When being grown in a field, the spacing between plants looks more like 5cm (2 in} which is about 5lb of seeds per acre.(Motis, 2011)
Conclusion
Overall, chia seems to have more benefits than risks. It is nutritious, easy to grow, and easy to harvest. Its ability to reseed itself and self pollinate is a strength as well as a weakness. I definitely an enjoying growing chia and am looking forward to a decent harvest. Despite all of the troubles I recounted above that I faced with growing chia, it has been a very easy and low maintenance plant to grow and I have been very surprised by its resilience against water stress and lack of pest damage. I highly recommend this crop to grow and hope that you see the value in it as well. Happy gardening and farming!
References
Carwood, Derek. 2023. “How to Plant and Grow a Chia Plant.” Better Homes & Gardens. July 24, 2023. https://www.bhg.com/how-to-plant-and-grow-a-chia-plant-7562195.
Londre, Romi. 2022. “Chia Seeds Pack Nutritional Punch.” Mayo Clinic Health System. April 28, 2022. https://www.mayoclinichealthsystem.org/hometown-health/speaking-of-health/chia-seeds-pack-nutritional-punch.
Motis, Tim. 2011. “Chia (Salvia Hispanica L.): An Ancient Food Crop with Rediscovered Potential for Providing Nutrition.” ECHOcommunity. January 20, 2011. https://www.echocommunity.org/resources/82c71b13-b842-430a-8d02-f0eef5bb97bd.
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