From sowing to pricking through to harvest

Soil and location for the beetroot

Like almost all vegetables, beetroot needs a lot of sun to grow. Therefore, choose a location that is as full of sun as possible. Furthermore, the beetroot has quite deep roots and penetrates best in loose soil. here learn more about the perfect location for beetroot.

Prepare the soil

So that the beets can thrive optimally, you should use the Garden soil prepare accordingly. To do this, proceed as follows:

• Loosen up with one Rake slightly on the ground.
• If heavy or medium eaters grew on the bed in the previous year, you should dig some compost into the ground to increase the nutrient content in the soil.

Sow beetroot

Beetroot can be sown directly in the bed from the end of May or you prefer the small plants at home on the windowsill.

For direct sowing in the garden, proceed as follows:

• Using a string, draw several gutters at a distance of 30cm with a depth of 1 to 2cm.
• Put one or two seeds into the soil about two inches apart.
• Cover the seeds with soil.
• Pour the freshly sown beetroot well.

More about sowing you will learn about beetroot and interesting varieties here.

Prefer beetroot

Beetroot can be preferred at home from March. This saves pricking and thus time and work. For pre-breeding you can use coconut sticks or similar means of attraction, or you can use an egg carton that you cut apart and fill with soil. You can later plant the box with the plants in the bed. During pre-cultivation, it is essential to ensure that the substrate does not dry out. To do this, cover the cultivation vessel with cling film. You will receive more tips on how to move forward here.

Good neighbors for beetroot

Like all plants - and humans too - beetroot thrives best when it is surrounded by neighbors who are in good spirits. These include, among others, French beans, lettuce, dill and cucumber. It does not get along well with potatoes, leek or corn. here get a complete overview of good and bad neighbors for beetroot.

Care for beetroot

Beetroot needs a lot of water, which is why you should water it thoroughly, especially on dry days. You can use the bed to protect the soil from drying out mulch.

Although the beetroot belongs to the middle eater, it is happy to be given a fertilizer with compost. You will find out how and when to pamper your beets with compost here.

Prick the beetroot

Beetroot is usually sown too densely to ensure that there are no gaps in the bed. However, the beets need space to grow. Therefore, the plants should be pricked out as soon as the plants are large enough to pull out. Healthy plants remain in the bed at a distance of about 7 to 10 cm. You can find out more about the correct procedure for pricking out here.

Harvest beetroot

Depending on the variety, beetroot has a development time of three to four months. However, tubers and leaves can be harvested and edible at any other time. If you have sown at the end of May, you can harvest your large tubers at the end of August / beginning of September. Those who want to harvest later in the year postpone sowing accordingly. In any case, the last harvest should be done before the first frost.

To get the tubers out of the ground, grasp the greens firmly with one hand and pull on them. If the turnip is very tight, you can loosen it with slight jerking movements.

Propagate beetroot

If you want to harvest beetroot seeds yourself and use them for propagation, you have to be patient: because beetroot does not produce seeds until the second year. If you want to grow seeds, leave a few plants in the fall and cover them with some sticks to set them up Protect from frost. In the coming year, an impressively high flower stalk with green-red flowers will form, which will develop seeds in autumn.