Leila Bandian - Graduate students Department of Horticulture, Agriculture, University of Mashhad (FUM)
Hossein Neamati - Assistant Professor Department of Horticulture, Agriculture, University of Mashhad(FUM)
Mohammad Moghaddam - Assistant Professor Department of Horticulture, Agriculture, University of Mashhad(FUM)

Spinach is a leafy vegetable that plays important role in the human diet. The main objective of the present study was to investigate the effects of the clay absorbent bentonite and fertilization on growth and development of spinach. The treatments included urea fertilization times (25, 50, 75 days after sowing), Bentonite level (0, 0.2, 0.4, 0.6, 0.8 weight percent) and measurements of plant height, plant weight, leaf number, Length petiole, and leaf area were performed 100 days after sowing. Results showed that urea fertilization on 50 days after sowing and application of 60 gr/kg of bentonite had the highest effect on growth characteristics in spinach. The results showed that implementing an appropriate rate of bentonite and fertilization regime may bring about favorable results for spinach production.

leafy vegetable, nitrogen fertilizer