I've tried on a number of occasions to grow beets but have never been successful. I purchased some the other day in the supermarket and they were wonderful, but I couldn't help wondering if they had been sprayed with pesticides/fungicides, etc. So, I would really like to grow my own. Please tell me the kind of soil, fertilizer regime, watering, and the name of the ones you have found grow well. I think they are planted in late summer - is that correct? I have read that each seed is actually a cluster of seeds - do they need to be separated? I also like the leaves, so if one type of beet is good for both roots and leaves, please tell me that, too. Okay - anything you guys/gals can tell me about growing beets will be a great help. Thanks.
Hi Sureena, I'm not sure where you live, so I phrased it for general guidelines. Beets are a cool weather crop. sow 2 weeks before the last spring frost. Ideal growing temps. is 60-65d, in cool summer areas sow every 3 weeks. in warm summer areas sow in spring and again in the fall. Beets like rich, neutral soil. Amend it if necessary, they like loose, organic rich soil. Sow seeds 1/2" apart. After they germinate thin to 4" apart, carefully by hand. You can harvest the "thinnings" and add them to your salads. If it looks like you'll not be getting any nice showers, cover your rows with a row light row cover to help keep the micro-climate humid so the seed have a better chance of germinating. after you thin your row, mulch it with a couple of inches of mulch, we use grass clippings, to suppress weeds and conserve moisture Fertilize with 5-5-5 after the beet tops are 3-4" tall. Aphids, flea beetles and leaf miners all like this crop. Keep the light floating row cover over your crop(supported with a "frame of some kind, we use fruit tree prunings to make an arch) pinned securely to the ground. Any of the beet varieties can be harvested for their tops. Bulls blood is a deep, dark red leaf. most of the others are just green. Hopefully this will help.
Agree with carolyn, There are mixed seed packs out there which allow you to try a variety of beets. I'm trying 3 sets this year, bulls blood I do like them dark. cylinder which is great for slicing, and will be for my pickles. and then a mixed selection. to see what comes up and how they eat, so i can decide next year what i want. Must admit they are one of the easier crops to sow being clustered. Carolyn, when sowing a fall crop, can you do it on the same spot?
Hi Dan, In regards to sowing in the same spot, I don't think it's an issue unless you are already fighting an insect or nematode problem, then I would move them elsewhere.
We have sandy soil so actually I don`t do anything special. Just put seeds on ground in early spring, cover lightly,,water, and let them grow. I might thin a bit if I go crazy and use a few too many seeds. You can also harvest the leaves without disturbing the bulb. Just leave the center and they will make more leaves. Double harvest !
Hello Sureenna-- You have posed some interesting questions concerning the growing of beetroot. First off you mentioned that you have tried to grow beetroot, but without success. Could you clarify, in what sense you were unsuccessful ? For instance-- did they bolt? Did they dry-up and never develop a bulb? Did they rot in the ground? Or did they not develop at all? Well then, to your questions: "What kind of soil?": Beetroot is tolerant of most soil types. Mine has a pH of 6. There are folks on our gardening complex that grow them in sandy soil, in clay-based soil...and mine is what we call "veen" (sort of peat-like). The soil composition factor that might be the most irritating to beetroot might be stoney soil...this leads into your next question. "What type of fertilizer?": I personally find that my beetroot does better in a soil that has not been fertilized recently. Certainly not with fresh farm manure. This could make the beetroot sort of "woody" and course; they may also fork and become somewhat deformed, as carrots would do under the same circumstances. (I learned this the hard way). "Watering?": I almost never give my beetroot water, except in the spring when I plant the seeds and after thinning out and transplanting. Obviously if we have a protracted period of draught, I do give some water....but one must be careful not to give too much at once (especially after a while of dryness, as they will rapidly take up the water and can split). "What kinds grow well?": Well, I have grown many sorts of beetroot over the years, but now I only grow two sorts each year. They are "Chioggia" (a ringed white and red flesh) and "Cylindra" (an elongated one, whose exposed body is typically ¾ above ground). A good type to try if you consider yourself a novice might be, "Bolthardy", although there are many sorts. You inquired if they were to be planted in late summer: I always plant they types of beetroots that I grow as early in the spring as the weather allows. I do not know anyone that grows them during the winter (outdoors). Having said that, you could keep them outdoors in a clamp throughout the winter and take from this cache sa needed. Seed cluster separation: I do not try and separate the seed clusters at all. Leaves for eating: I cannot comment on whether there is a particular variety that is specifically suited for leaf AND bulb harvest. I would imagine that you could eat the leaves of most any beetroot, as long as you did not take ALL the leaves when harvesting. You know Sureenna, when I grow beetroot, I do it in a very non-scientific way. I simply broadcast or plant them liberally in rows and then when they have the second set of leaves beginning, I thin them out and transplant the plants that I thin out into a bed just adjacent to the patch in which they were sown. Nothing fancy. My personal view is --to prepare the designated patch the year before planting. --that it is best to plant your seeds as early as possible. --Thin them as soon as the 2nd set of leaves begin to form (so that the bulb and taproot are not too big, long. --and finally, not to over-water or under-water them. If you let the soil become too dry it can reduce the growth rate as well as make the bulb a tad woody and less juicy. ** You know, I have been thinking about doing my beetroot a deferent way for a few tears, but have not gotten around to it yet. Sowing the seeds individually (one to a pot), and then transplanting them once the seedling has its first set of leaves. I have heard good reports on this method, but to be honest, I grow too many for it to be feasible--it would be too work-intensive. Having said that, I may do it next year for the 'fun' of it. Fotos-- Early prep of the soil: Sowing of the seed beds: Thinning out and transplanting. You can see the original seeding bed, as the plants there are large and have not been very disturbed...whereas the transplantees are just adjacent and have had a two-week period of stasis due to the trauma of being transplanted. Really, the only thing now left to do is to wait until they are ready to be harvested. Good luck with your beetroot adventure.
