Tell me your beet secrets!!!!

[Teka]

I love beets but have had horrible luck with them. One great year -- but not sure how to replicate the success! I soak my seeds before planitng; keep the ground consistently wet through germination; double dug the bed, added extra compost.... Last year, all was well but my pole beans overshadowed the beets and they floundered -- but this year's seedlings are popping up and looking great.

Do you hill them? What are your secrets for growing beets?

 

[catjac1975]

I love beets but have had horrible luck with them. One great year -- but not sure how to replicate the success! I soak my seeds before planitng; keep the ground consistently wet through germination; double dug the bed, added extra compost.... Last year, all was well but my pole beans overshadowed the beets and they floundered -- but this year's seedlings are popping up and looking great.

Do you hill them? What are your secrets for growing beets?

I could never form a beet until I added green sand.

 

[curly_kate]

I grow mine in a raised bed I made out of a big tub with the bottom cut out. They seem to do OK. Mulch really can help them germinate IMO.

 

[momofdrew]

I have always had trouble with beets...how do keep them from going woody?? should I mulch them before the beet rises out of the ground??

 

[digitS']

Beets may be my favorite veggie. I like the little ones with roots about the size of the smaller radishes and then, the whole plant shows up on the plate in a nice little tangled mess !

Of course, I use plants smaller than these - the thinnings. And, beets need to be thinned because they grow from seed cases with multiple seeds inside. Too tiny, and it gets kind of silly bringing them into the kitchen but the sooner you separate them the better for those remaining.

The horticulturalists tell us that the roots are more than those bulbs at the top - they go down many inches into the soil. That soil should drain easily and be fertile. I've got the easily drained soil - for those who don't, I guess you should just work in a lot of organic matter and cultivate deeply. They appreciate soil on the alkaline side of the scale so I bet that acidic soil can be a problem for beets.

My bed of beets gets a good amount of organic fertilizer - right up there with the "heavy feeders." I don't expect them to stay long, very few are saved for full-sized, but the fertilizer will still be in that bed after the beets have been pulled.

Fall greens often follow beets in my garden and, if I can get them out soon enuf, green beans. Some gardeners sow beet seed for a fall crop but I can't seem to get away with that. They don't like hot weather and the summer climate must be just a little too hot and dry here for them to get started well with a late sowing. Water what you start early regularly so that soil moisture is adequate.

Early spring sowing, deeply prepared bed, fertile soil, thinning conscientiously, maintain soil moisture and for me - an early harvest for most of them! Victory! You can't beat 'em, beets !

Steve

edit: oh, and hilling those that remain thru the season helps.

 

[ducks4you]

I had a pretty good crop last year. It would have been outstanding except I couldn't get to ANY gardening until after my DD's April 2nd wedding. Beets didn't go into their bed until May.

I pickled them.

THIS year, they'll be a 2nd planting this weekend.
They like highly composted, very loose soil for good roots. You can even skip the thinning if the soil is well tilled.
They like moisture. You will lose them if they dry out.
They CAN compete with weeds. I've had crops that grew despite the competition.
They do NOT like to be transplanted.

 

[silkiechicken]

Everyone says they don't transplant well.... that's about the only way I do them.

Just sprout them, put them into individual 3 ounce cups, and when they are about 5 weeks old with 5 leaves or so.... I put them out 4 inches apart in double rows. Results in evenly spaced 3-4 inch beets. Use early wonder type.

 

[Teka]

Thanks for the tips!

My soil tends to be acidic so maybe I need to reduce this -- will green sand do this? I usually add limestone. I planted very sparingly so I don't need much thinning so far but will keep watch.

Else, I am looking forward to pickling some, but my favorite use is roasting beets with other root crops -- turnips, carrots, rutabegas, etc. in a little olive oil and fresh rosemary. Yum!

I'd guess that beets are like turnips in that they get woody when they are older and when the heat/dry weather gets to them.

BTW, check out : http://www.reusablecanninglids.com/

I switched to Tattler reusable lids 2 years ago. It is pricey to start, but they can be used over and over again for many, many years. I have been extrememly pleased with them. Read the directions carefully so they vent, but other than care in opening the jars, they work just like regular lids. I can a lot -- and the lids were an annoying cost every year that I can now avoid.

 

[Teka]

The beet seedlings are on their 3rd set of leaves and I am thinning judiciously -- the thinnings were a great addition to our salad tonight! I had a roasted beet salad the other night: oven-roasted beets peeled and chopped, Granny Smiths apples, shreded carrots, blanched green bean pieces, and celery in a balsamic vinagrette..... I am hopin for a big crop to have that salad often!!!!!

 

[retiredwith4acres]

We do use a hill to raise beets and we do thin as well.