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Deformed chard leaves #928458

Asked April 15, 2026, 11:34 AM EDT

Hello, my chard leaves are coming out deformed. I have been gardening in the area for more than 25 years and have never seen something like this. If you could please advise. Thank you!

Montgomery County Maryland

Expert Response

Hi,

Other than the bit of cupping or ruching I can make out, the leaves and stem look otherwise healthy and lack the signs of other issues like leaf miners or other pests. You checked leaf undersides for aphids?  If there was a nutrient issue you might see yellowing, ior edge scorch or yellowing between veins which is not seen here. 

If you regularly rotate where you grow it and treat it as a heavy feeder plants needed compost/balanced fertilizer regularly, I'm going to assume this is an environmental issue caused by the temperature swings we have been having or a variety with thicker leaves that can tend to this trait. 


Sue

An Ask Extension Expert Replied April 15, 2026, 1:05 PM EDT
Thank you so much for your answer. They were planted last spring in new beds with new soil (coast of maine container soil) so it only has been one season for them. It could be the weather, but it seems like something deeper is going on.  I do not see any yellowing, the plants look healthy otherwise.

I am.sending another picture this time zooming in a particular leaf, please let me know what you think. As always, I really appreciate the help your team give us to us, amateur gardeneres!

Thank you!
Inge 

El miércoles, 15 de abril de 2026, 01:06:02 p.m. EDT, Ask Extension escribió:


The Question Asker Replied April 15, 2026, 5:50 PM EDT

I can't enlarge the photo enough to see if there is anything unusual. I am not finding any of the usual symptoms of disease or of insect damage that leads to an obvious conclusion. Chard is usually pretty  free of most problems. Does the texture of the leaf surface feel different in some way when compared to others? If you use a magnifier on your phone do look closely do you see anything that would be a better indicator than the photos we have show? Right now, I am not coming up with a reason beyond environmental reasons or very rich soil that led to fast growth and maybe some malformation.

I did see a photo of Bright Lights chard and a couple of the green leaves were very distorted, but OK enough to be used in an advertisement.

An Ask Extension Expert Replied April 16, 2026, 8:51 AM EDT

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