How to Grow Beets: A Colorful, Cool-Season Garden Favorite

Hi Hamish, I do wish we had an Almanac for England as so much of our history and lore is from that part of the world! In terms of gardening zones, most of England would be considered Zones 8b or 9a: https://www.plantmaps.com/interactive-united-kingdom-plan... This is indeed most comparable to the Seattle area. See the USDA map: https://planthardiness.ars.usda.gov/PHZMWeb/   However, there are still differences due to microclimates and other factors. I do believe that RHS in Engalnd has developed their own zone map; perhaps that would be of help?

While not as problematic as some veggies, we do tend to rotate our crops by family. Beets are part of the Root Crops—onion family, beets, carrots, parsnips. https://www.almanac.com/crop-rotation-tips-vegetable-gardens">See more on our Crop Rotation Guide.

Often, the top of the root ball peaks out from under the soil, indicating it's time, or close to time, to harvest. You don't indicate your location or when in October you planted, but check the maturity period of the seeds; it's usually expressed in the number of days. And, while beets do well—or at least can be started—in a chill, in spring, the weather usually gets warmer and the Sun shines longer with each day. Fall brings opposite conditions: usually increasing chill and diminishing sunlight. So you may have missed the "second season." 

The fungus isn't harmful, though you may want to remove the obviously infected parts of the leaf just to get rid of the dead leaf tissue. 

Sometimes if beets are harvested too late (grow too large), they will be tough, fibrous, and stringy. In general, beets 1 to 2 inches wide are ideal, but it will really depend on the variety.

Will my beets be OK if we get a 32 degree frost tonight ?. Thanks

Yes, you will want to use a vegetable peeler (or knife) to peel the beets before cooking. Treat them as you would carrots!

Thank you for your feedback! We have revised the copy to better reflect recommendations from state Cooperative Extensions.

Not sure if it was the crop rotation for you but I feel like that shouldn't have effected anything as long as you put nutrients back into the soil...I planted banana peppers and bell peppers this year and the bell peppers were amazing producers while the banana peppers were an utter failure....same thing for me---leaves were yellow and fell off, barely flowered, didn't set fruit...I think i got two banana peppers total...it was pitiful...while right next to those plants, the bell peppers took off, easily growing 4 to 5 on each plant at a time....who knows. I personally think they are just difficult to grow or maybe it was an issue with the starts I used.

First, you may harvest beet greens as you thin the seedlings in the beginning and continue until the greens are too tough. 

Also, you may indeed harvest some of the greens before you take the root, but not all of them. Just one or two per plant. Otherwise, the root will not mature.

The greens are best when they're young and tender--about 6 inches long.

Masha, Beet root, the ball (usually) that grows under the ground, is edible. And beet leaves are edible. The flowers can be saved and the seeds harvested from them. It is not common to eat the flowers. So prepare the leaves like you would spinach (raw or cooked) and roast or boil the root. There is a lot of eating in a beet!

Usually, beets that get old or big taste woody, but have you tasted them?  Why not? Try it.

If you're boiling beets, perhaps canned doesn't taste much different.  However, a fresh beet is very firm and crunchy and good for salads. The best way to figure out the taste is to try one!

If you wish to eat cooked beets, the best way is easily to roast them. You'll never get that taste from boiling or from canned beets. To roast, just chop in quarters, and toss with some salt, pepper, and olive oil. Then bake at 350 degrees until they're done (not burned). They'll have a carmelized taste to them--very sweet!

If all you know are canned beets you are missing a lot. Boiled are not and bland as canned. I like them steamed. I boil them if I have a lot of them to do. Then dunked in cold water and the skin just slides right off. They are sweet to taste.

I have avoided beets most of my life but gave them a try after getting them in a box. I found a recipe that called for beets, potato, carrots, etc to be roasted in the oven after being coated with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. It was delicious. You can find that recipe on allrecipesdotcom.

How are the beets in your garden doing? I am planting here in at. Petersburg. Do you have tips ? Thanks Jules

As for us we just put chicken dong on our ground and or hog dong horse is real good to plow in real good make a fer an plant

With beets, you can harvest when they are 1 inch in diameter. Most people harvest when beets are 2 to 3 inches in diameter. If they get too big, they can taste woody. You just have to pull one up to see its size!

Remember that the beet greens at the top can be eaten, too, similar to spinach. The younger the beet, the more tender the beet green.

You can leave beets in the ground to store but do harvest the beets in the fall but it's best to pull them before the first freeze.

You can grow most any variety as long as you plant at the proper time (personally we love candy-striped 'Chioggia'). In Louisiana, the best planting dates for beets are 1/15 - 2/28 (spring) or 8/15 -10/1 (fall) because, as you know, they need cooler weather. We'd probably go with a fall planting. 

Beet greens can be harvested when they are between 4 and 6 inches tall; baby beet greens are picked when smaller--about 2 to 3 inches tall. You might want to wait just a bit longer. Harvest sparingly per beet, leaving several leaves on the beet, if you also want to harvest the root later on.

It sounds like you're saying the top of the ROOT is 1 1/2" wide. They sound like they are bulbing up nicely and should be harvested soon. They may get bigger, but they also might get tougher.

Plant them! sprouting doesn't hurt!

Well, Sparkey, you've turned us on to something new. Cylindra beets (for those who do not know) do not form as ball-shapes but as 6- to 7-inch cylinders, thus the name. One seed provider advises spacing the rows 12 to 16 inches apart. These, and other beets, like lots of well-composted soil. Hills would work, but so would loose, amended (per above) ground soil that has been worked to a depth of 6 to 7 inches.

Beetroot is the root part of the beet plant (vs. the leaves, or greens).

As for companion plants, I'm usually finding that beets are helped by lettuce, and according to some sources, they also help lettuce in turn. I can not find a scientific paper verifying this, however. You might try an experiment in your own garden and conditions.

http://www.aces.edu/counties/Limestone/MastGard/companion...

Maintain even soil moisture. It helps to add mulch or compost around the beets to supress weeds and keep the moisture in the soil. Too much nitrogen in the soil can promote leaf growth and cause beetroots to be small.

This is just different variety of beets. There are also beets that are orange like carrots and orange with white strips.

Saw directly. It is advisable to put a little bit of manure with the seed (in the hole) while planting beets because they need phosphorous

Beet roots naturally push out of the ground as they mature. You could have 6 inches of beet above ground! However, the roots should not be so small. There are a variety of reasons for this problem, mainly related to soil preparation: 1) your soil was too compacted and not loose enough 2) there was not enough organic matter and nutrients in soil, 3) the soil was too acidic (get a soil test). Also, beets need plenty of direct sunlight and they need to thinned so they are not crowded and have enough space to grow.

Legumes affix nitrogen into the soil. Makes for nice greens and tiny roots.

Before planting my seeds I toss 1tbsp of Epsom salt and a uncooked pinto bean then add beet seed and cover with soil this year was the best beets ever.

That sounds interesting. Were they individual pods, I am trying to visualize this. and am thinking of rolled newspaper like a log, but that does not sound right. How do you roll dirt in paper? if it worked I would like to try it.

We're stumped. Beets do have reddish stems. However, they also have leaves! You could always bring a sample to your local garden nursery. I guess the plant will keep growing and you'll find out soon enough! 

Yes, beets grow well in  deep containers (more than 1 foot deep). In Louisiana, the best planting dates for beets are 1/15 - 2/28 (spring) or 8/15 -10/1 (fall) because, as you said, they need cooler weather. We'd probably go with a fall planting. 

It sounds as if it could be overwatering. They could be dampening off. Stick your finger in the soil up to the first knuckle, if there is some moist soil sticking to your finger, you should be good on water and let them dry out.

White patches on beets usually means some form of mildew, a fungal disease: http://www.ipm.ucdavis.edu/PMG/r735100611.html 

There are numerous fungicides to prevent the spread of mildew. Speak to your local garden center about what's available in your state.
 

Our favorite last name! Hi, Shane Rains! Members of this family (also spinach, chard) are pretty resilient and can deal with just about any preceder (if you are going to go back to the same bed after skipping a year), but because beets are heavy eaters, it's best to follow and prep them with legumes (peas, beans). BTW: Don't forget the greens! Nutritious as well as yum-mo!

I've only been growing beets a short time but everything I've read says they do not transplant well. I grew mine from seeds this year, placing 2 seeds in each hole, 4-5 inches apart. When they started coming in, I pulled the smaller one in each hole and left the stronger one. Actually harvested the last set today. They are excellent tasting too.

Chioggia beets usually have pretty red and white candy stripes. It's not uncommon for some to turn out all red or all white; there's nothing wrong.

Beets like cool weather, but they can take some heat and it's not that hot in San Francisco right now. With a shade cover (an old bedsheet), they should do OK. Or, you can plant again in the fall when the weather is cooler. If you have lush green and small bulbs, this is usually due to too much nitrogen in the soil. Make sure you have loose soil with lots of compost mixed in. And they may need more water.

Yep, live and learn. You can plant small pots in the ground if they are made from peat or organic materials which decompose. If you plant seeds in plastic pots, you do not put the plastic pots in the ground. As you learned, you would want to plant one seed per plastic pot so you don't have to separate the seedlings and risk damaging their roots.

At this point, we would thin by clipping some of the beet seedlings at their base. Then, on a cloudy day, lift the beets from plastic pots very carefully, gently placing in a well-prepared soil bed that has 2 inches of compost mixed in. Plant at the same depth they experienced in the pot. Space the beet plants 4 to 6 inches apart in a row. After planting, gently water at the base of the plant. 

This year my beet patch is 420 sqr feet. One beet per plant. Last year we canned just over 100 qrts of beet. pickled. I expect at 150 qrts this year.

No dumb questions! Yes, one beet plant produces one beet root! Check the seed packet for spacing.

Everybody's got to learn at some point - not everyone had gardening parents who taught them, so ask away. Beets typically don't respond well to being transplanted - buy a packet of seeds instead (and it's way cheaper). If you're having trouble keeping the seeds moist enough to germinate, try putting an old board over the planted seeds after you water them. Check it every day for moisture (keep moist but not soaked) and sprouted beets. Remove the board once the beets are sprouted. They need full sun, or as much sun as you can give them.

its a good question for a beginner. one per plant is because it is a root we are after, similar to carrots and they usually only grow one. rarely, i have had double or triple beets and up to six on my carrots but usually just one. items like that are best from seed. much cheaper and do much better. good luck!

Crop rotation is the first line of defense to avoid contaminated soil this year. Eliminating weeds will aid in the management of leafminers. Row covers can also be used to exclude flies if placed over the crop before flies are active. Begin scouting susceptible crops in mid-May.  Scout undersides of leaves for eggs and treat when they are first observed in order to target larvae as they hatch. 
During most years, you may need sprays to prevent injury. Apply insecticides according to label directions. There are effective treatments available for both conventional and organic growers, however, regulations differ by state so we suggest you speak to your cooperative extension county office: http://extension.psu.edu/counties

Here's a good guide to growing sugarbeets on a larger scale:

http://cropwatch.unl.edu/sugarbeets

I forgot to mention I'm in central il.

Thanks for sharing, Michael. That's impressive. How much space do you use to can 100 qrts of beets?

Not all seeds will germinate so we always start out planting more than is needed. Once you see the seedlings emerge -- and what has come up -- you need to make sure there is enough space between each plant so that they have ample room to grow to a healthy size. This means taking out the "extra" seedlings in between each plant. Otherwise, the plants will be too close together and will compete with each other. It's hard to thin but you must. Sometimes you can replant the seedlings that are removed, but they don't usually survive and most people don't bother; throw them in the compost to decompose.

Beet seeds can be planted as soon as the ground can be worked without becoming cloddy. In Connecticut, this is often late March to early April. See our Best Planting Dates chart: https://www.almanac.com/gardening/planting-calendar

In Oregon, beets can be planted 2 to 4 weeks before the last killing frost (March, April) through July and you'll have beets growing until autumn!

Have you planted this variety of beets before? Beet varieties can have different shades of red, especially heirlooms which can be pink, yellow, white, and candy-striped.

Hi, Ben, Raw beets are very earthy roots. From what we've learned, most beet varietes do not have this burning sensation though some types do. Of course, everyone has different food sensitivies (and allergies), too, though you said that both you and your friend had this issue so this probably isn't the case. To avoid the throat burning sensation, try peeling beets before eating them raw. Also, we suggest that you eat them in small amounts--for example, grated on a salad. Another tip is to simply eat them cooked. Steam or roast the beets. Oxalic acid in the beet skin gets neutralized when cooked. Our favorite way to eat beets is to cut them in bite-size pieces, toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper, and rosemary, and roast for an hour or until tender.

We do not know what the "growths" are on the roots of your beets. They may be unformed beets.

Beets often get tough and fibrous when they get too big, or when the fertililty and moisture levels during the growing period are not optimal, and/or when temperatures are too high. Also, smaller beets tends to be better: the recommended size for eating is about 2 inches in diameter.

Beet seeds are actually clusters if single-seeded fruits grown together into a seedball or multiple fruit. Thinning of seedlings to about 1 inch apart is recommended to allow for normal root development.

We hope this helps!

The beet tops should be left; this is how the beet grows. When you're ready to pull the beet, you can eat the tops. If you are thinning the beets, you can eat the thinnings.

Usually, beets that get this big taste woody, but have you tasted them?  Why not? Try it.  We've never grown beets this big so we'll look to the community for ideas. Enter these monsters into a state fair? :-)

Beets grow from seeds, but you can save beet seeds from the prior year if you wish (as long as the variety isn't a "hybrid"). Store a few good-size beets through winter and replant them in the early spring. Let the beet plants grow flowers. The flowers will be quite tall so you'll need to stake them. After they grow spikes, snip off the ends to help the seeds mature. As the spikes turn a brownish color and dry out, cut them and place them in a paper bag in a warm, dry place. After two weeks, rub out the seeds. Store in a cool, dry area of your house such as the back of a large refrigerator.

A part of the beet will often swell above the ground and that is fine.  Plant about half-inch to one-inch below soil.

First time's the charm, as they say. In so many ways.

It's a pretty sure thing that the problem is crop rotation, Howard. Failure to rotate crops leads to nutrition-deficient soil. Repeating most crops in the same place will almost inevitably lead to increasingly poor-performing ones. And failure to rotate is a common hazard because most people think more or less like you: It did so well here, this must be a perfect spot for it! Alas, no.

As it happens, we have an article on exactly this in the 2014 Almanac, which will be available in stores around the end of August. Essentially, most edible plants should grow in a "new" spot in the garden every year. There are rotation patterns to follow (some are cited in the article) that are advantageous to the soil and disadvantageous to plant pests, and the article includes a chart putting every crop into its family to help you plan year after year..

It's really too late to do anything now; that is, during this growing season with these seeds/plants. You might try a new late summer/fall crop our sources suggest that this is a strong possibliity in your state. Be sure to prep the soil, etc., in a "new" area of the garden, if you do.

For the time being, in advance of next season, make a map of your current garden, showing where the various plants were set. (This practice is noted in the upcoming Almanac article.) This will aid you in developing a rotation plan for next few years—and with luck and such planning, you will have wonderful harvests for years.

BTW, if you read the article in the 2014 Almanac, please let us know if you find it useful.

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.

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.

A Purdue University study recommends Bull's Blood, Eagle, Excaliber, and Red Ace.

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.

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