How to plant and grow Beetroot

Beetrootis a biennial plant that grows as an annual plant. They grow for their swollen roots and their leaves. There are two main types of beets: spherical beets and long-root beets. Beetroot can be red, orange, golden, yellow, white, or even concentric ring roots. A large edible leaf grows from the root; green leaves can have red, yellow, or white veins.

I have always found beetroot to be effortlessly responsive to the standard routine I use with any seed large enough to handle and small enough to be grown in a plug. Beetroot will not germinate at temperatures below 7ºC (45ºF) so I sow two or three seed clusters per plug (not too small) and germinate them in the greenhouse before hardening them off in a cold frame. 

There was a time when I always thinned beetroot conscientiously but I now like to grow them as a little group of between two and five beets. I prepare their growing ground with a good dressing of garden compost. They respond well to plenty of richness and water, and if too dry or under-nourished, will respond by bolting, which will stop root development unless the flowering stem is cut back as soon as it is noticed. 

When the seedlings have been properly hardened off – and the simplest way of doing that is to put the plug trays on the soil where they are to be grown for a week – I plant them out at 23cm (9in) spacings in each direction. This is wide enough to get a small hoe in between them and also for the groups to swell out with ease. The ideal size for a beetroot is somewhere between a golf and a cricket ball. 

We harvest them by pulling the entire group of plants that grew together in each plug. Growing them in a little cluster also helps stop the occasional over-enthusiastic beet from getting too big. I find that two successional sowings are enough but that may be a measure of our consumption rather than the perfect number. 

I sow the first in March for planting out in May and the second in June for an August planting. This latter planting will stay in the ground all winter and although cold weather will reduce some of the roots to hollow, soggy shells, it is astonishing how new foliage can nevertheless appear in spring – and the leaves are very good either eaten raw in a salad or cooked like spinach. 

They have a very high vitamin A content with more iron, calcium, trace minerals and vitamin C than spinach. I have tried many varieties but I particularly like ‘Bull’s Blood’, ‘Pronto’, which is smaller than most, ‘Chioggia’, which is ringed pink and white, ‘Carillon’, which is long, and ‘Burpees Golden’, which has golden leaves and roots. Finally, my two favourite ways of eating beetroot, especially as the days get colder: the first is roasted whole or halved with thyme, and the second is boiled and served with a hot cream sauce. Both are ideal with a slow-roasted shoulder of lamb and a rich glass of that miracle food that cures most of the day’s troubles – red wine.

 

Family	Amaranthaceae
Growing zones	N/A
Growing season(s)	cool weather: spring and fall
Spacing:	4 to 6 inches
Start indoors or direct sow	either
Indoor sowing date	2 to 4 weeks prior to transplant (6 to 8 weeks before average last frost)
Earliest outdoor planting	4 weeks before average last frost
Soil temperature	50° to 85°
Fall planting	direct sow, up to 12 weeks before average first frost
Sun needs	4+ hours
Water needs	moderate
Harvest category	one harvest
Preparation Tip	Beets can give you three different harvests. Beet greens 3 inches long are great in salads, so keep them when thinning seedlings. Mature beet greens can be cooked like any other green. And of course, the roots can be harvested early for baby beets or later for full-size beets.

Snapshot	A cool-season root crop that you can grow in rows or tucked into open spaces in your garden, beets can be enjoyed for both the root and the leaves. A loose, sandy loam soil with a near neutral pH (6.5 to 6.8) and ample organic matter offers the best harvest.
Starting	Grown in raised beds, in-ground beds, or containers, beets can be direct sown or started indoors. Each seed actually contains multiple seeds, which you will need to thin to one plant when seedlings get to be 2 to 3 inches tall. If direct sowing, plant these seeds 1 inch apart, ½ inch deep, and thin to a final spacing of 4 to 6 inches apart (if you plant to harvest as baby beets, 2-inch spacing will do). Before sowing, soak seeds for 24 hours in water to speed germination.
Growing	Keep the planting area consistently moist until germination, then keep the area watered regularly. Mulch to conserve moisture, and add a balanced fertilizer or light layer of compost midway through the season.
Harvesting and Storing	If harvesting for both greens and root, you can remove up to one-third of the greens at a time until you are ready to harvest the root. Roots can be harvested at any stage of development. Loosen the soil around the beet with a trowel and pull to harvest. Cut the greens off immediately, leaving about 1 inch of stem if you plan to store them in a root cellar. In climates where the ground doesn’t freeze, you can leave a fall planting in the ground and harvest when needed.
Common Problem	Voles (commonly mistaken for mice) hide out in mulch and feast on beet roots. If you have issues with voles, skip the mulch.