Photo Credit
Darasp Kran/Shutterstock
Botanical Name
Beta vulgaris
Plant Type
Soil pH
Cummins
Subhead
Learn how to plant, grow, and harvest beets
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Planting
Beets should ideally receive at least 6 hours of direct sunlight per day. While they grow best in well-prepared, fertile soil, they tolerate average to low soil fertility. This root vegetable will NOT tolerate acidic soils (pH below 6.0). A soil pH between 6.0 and 7.0 is best, and slightly alkaline (7.0+) soils can be tolerated.
Avoid planting beets where Swiss chard or spinach has recently been grown, as they are cousins of beets and are susceptible to similar pests and diseases.
When to Plant Beets
- Start seeding your first round of beets in early spring, as soon as the soil is workable. To allow the round beetroots to develop properly, the soil should be free of rocks and other obstacles.
- Make successive plantings every 2 to 3 weeks until mid-summer.
- Successive plantings are possible through summer as long as daytime temperatures don’t exceed 75°F (24°C).
- Germination takes place in 5 to 8 days in soil that’s at least 50°F (10°C). In soil colder than that, it may take 2 to 3 weeks.
- Tip: To speed up germination, or when planting in areas with low moisture and rainfall, soak the seeds in water for 24 hours before planting.
- For a fall harvest, sow beet seeds from mid-summer through early fall, starting about 4 to 6 weeks before your first fall frost.
- Winter crops are a definite possibility in Zone 9 and warmer. Plant beets in early to late fall for a winter harvest.
How to Plant Beets
- Sow beet seeds directly into the ground. They do not like being transplanted.
- Sow seeds ½ inch deep and 1 to 2 inches apart in rows about 12 to 18 inches apart. Cover the seeds with a thin layer of soil after sowing.
- Make sure the soil remains moist for optimal germination. Soak seeds for 24 hours prior to planting to speed up germination.
Beet seeds are capsules that contain several seeds, so each one may yield two or three sprouts.
Check out this video to learn how to plant beets:
Types
Beets come in quite a few shapes and a rainbow of colors. Deep red is typical, but yellow and white varieties are also available, as are red-white ringed ones (pictured below)!
- ‘Chioggia’: red skin; when sliced open, reveals red and white concentric rings.
- ‘Detroit Dark Red’: Sturdy, traditional variety with a round, red root.
- ‘Formanova’: Long, cylindrical beets that grow in the same fashion as carrots. Excellent for canning.
- Yellow varieties include ‘Bolder’ or ‘Touchstone Gold’.
- White varieties include ‘Avalanche’ or Dutch heirloom ‘Albino’.
Harvesting
- Days to maturity tend to be between 55 and 70 for most varieties. In other words, plan to harvest beets about 2 months after planting.
- Harvest roots when golf ball-size or larger; very large roots may be tough and woody.
- Loosen the soil around the beet and gently pull it from the earth.
- Harvest the beet greens at almost any time, beginning when thinning seedlings. Take one or two mature leaves per plant, until leaf blades are more than 6 inches tall and become tough. (Roots will not fully form without greens, so leaving some is necessary for proper development.) The leaves can be twisted off and cooked like spinach. Or, see our recipe for Beet Greens Salad.
- If you experience mild winters, you can leave roots sown later in the season in the ground to dig up as you need them. Or, store roots in boxes of dry sand in a cool, frost-free place.
How to Store Beets
- Fresh beets can be stored in the refrigerator for 5 to 7 days.
- Tip: Clipping the tops off beets will keep them fresher for longer. Leave about 1 inch of stem on each beet, and store the greens separately.
- For long-term root cellar storage, make sure you brush off any soil clinging to the roots, then bury them in layers (but not touching) surrounded by dry sand or sawdust.
- Store in a cool, dry place. An unheated closet might do, or put them in a cooler in your basement. Read more about a new way to store beets in the root cellar.
- Sprouting is a sign of poor storage and leads to decay.
- Beets can be frozen, canned, and pickled, too!
- You can also freeze beet greens to use at a later date!
Gardening Products
Cooking Notes
Beets are a nutrient-dense food considered especially beneficial for health. Learn more in “Beets: Health Benefits!”
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For greens, harvest when they are 5 to 6 inches tall (now!). For the roots, harvest when they are 1-1/2 to 2 inches in diameter. This is usually 40 to 50 days in. They are most tender then. As they get bigger, they get more fibrous. Leave about 1 inch of foliage on the root when you harvest.
We planted in a box garden using the premixed container garden soil specifically for square foot gardens. Our beets are doing poorly. They have been kept most. We had one beet that had lovely greens but when we pulled it, the beet was not formed and it had lots of tiny roots going horizontally out from where the beet should have formed. Some of the beets are barely showing any greens and just stagnating. I live in Northern Utah. What am I doing wrong?
While almost every plant likes some moisture, few want to be "kept moist." You may have provided too much water.
We can't comment on the soil you purchased (because we know nothing about it), but every plant has specific needs. A significant consideration is pH (soil acidity vs sweetness, or alkalinity). Beets need/like 6.5. to 7.5. You would test your soil to determine whether you have proper pH.
Beets also like rich compost; you can add this to any premixed soil, ideally before the seeds are planted but you can gently mix is around plants as they grow.
You could also improve conditions by watering with mild "manure tea" (water steeped in manure).
A nitrogen-based fertilizer, administered about 6 weeks after plant emergence can encourage growth.
Finally, consider this, too: Utah State's Extension service suggests that you can replant in August and hope for a fall crop.
beets tend to be sweeter after a LIGHT frost or two
What is the juiciest variety of beets? I don't care for the pulpy ones, and would like to try some new varieties this year.
A Purdue University study recommends Bull's Blood, Eagle, Excaliber, and Red Ace.
Where in Az. do you live, Candy? We're in the White Mtns. 7,000 ft. When we harvested our beets this year, they were soft....did we leave them in the ground too long? Also, the article said you could have a winter crop? They are in the ground all through the winter? We need some help please. ha
If your beets were soft when you harvested them, you may have waited too long: Large beets (over 3 inches in diameter) can get soft, fibrous, or tough. Smaller beets (about 1 to 2 inches) are more flavorful and have a better texture. Medium beets (2 to 3 inches) are good for some purposes as well.
For high-elevation gardens of Arizona (above 6000 feet), you can plant beets around mid-May through mid-June. Looks like your first expected frost date in autumn is about mid-September, and last expected is mid June. I believe the White Mountains are in USDA Hardiness Zone 6, which is not warm enough to have a winter crop. In certain lower elevations of Arizona (Zones 9 and above), one might be able to do so, however.
Beets like it cool (60s F ideal for growing), and can withstand some frost, but they do not like a severe freeze.
i did what the site said, am my beets won't grow! grrr...
ground temp is the key, take the hi and the low for the day add together, divie in half, that is your groud temp.50*I plant in Oct and Nov. Good luck. I have had to planted three or four times to get thing to grow.Az is a very hot summer and a nice long winter.Candy
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