Growing beets

[damummis]

I am ashamed to call myself a gardener. I can't grow beets. Beets of all things. What am I doing wrong? I get beautiful tops and non existent roots. I need to solve this problem because I have beet seeds on the way. I didn't even attempt last year.

 

[digitS']

Too crowded?

Remember that beet seed is actually beet pods. And, each seed pod will sprout multiple plants. So, you have to thin . . . carefully. But, thin!!

Actually, I'm not much interested in the mature roots. I've always, always, always loved the baby beets! Beets are planted in succession in my garden so that I prolong the baby beet season.

I've been very willing to thin, thin, thin! Starting when the darn things are so tiny that it takes me 10 minutes to get a serving.

Steve

 

[Greenthumb18]

Yeah I agree with digits, take his advice .

Beets need room for their roots to grow, so you can get big beet roots. My beets this year didn't get that big as their suppose to , I think that was because i planted them too late in the summer. But i still had plenty of beet greens their so good just sauteed with garlic and olive oil and a little salt & pepper. You could eat the thinings this way too. I had to hurry to harvest all of my beets before the ground froze and Winter comes.

 

[journey11]

I don't do anything special to mine either. They definitely need thinning. I enjoy the baby beets and will never toss away a top, but I go for the big ones because I love to can them pickled. I grow Detroit Dark Red every year and I've let them get as big as a softball and they're still tender.

I would say too, to make sure you plant them at the right depth, which if I recall correctly is 1/2". If they are too shallow and just scratched into the top of the soil they'll not make a good root either.

 

[Ridgerunner]

Beets are a cool weather crop. I set the seeds as early as the ground can be worked in the spring, usually in mid-March where I am, then again in early September for a fall crop. Your timing will obviously be different than mine.

I make a ridge about 8" to 12" high and plant the seeds in two rows on top of that ridge. The rows are about 3" apart and I plant the seeds about 3 to 4 inches apart in those rows, staggering them to be spaced out as much as I can, if that makes any sense. At least beet seeds (or pods) are big enough so you can easily plant them one at a time, not like carrots. The purpose of the ridge is mostly to give them soft ground to grow in. In case of real wet weather, it allows the ground to drain too so they are not setting in wet dirt. Like everyone else, I thin and eat the thinnings.

 

[lesa]

Guilty! I don't thin my beets. They grow like crazy. If they start to look too squashed, I just pick a few and eat them! I think it helps to start with loose soil. I love the Detroit Beets too, Journey! Don't give up- beets really are easy to grow!