Beetroot
Red beetroot, yellow beetroot, white beetroot, polkabeta
Beetroot originates from beach beets that grew along the Mediterranean coast. In the Middle Ages, these beets spread across Europe as ‘Roman beet’. In the 16th and 18th centuries, they came to us in the North.
It is said that beets were offered on silver trays to the Greek god Apollo in his temple at Delphi. Today, beetroot is probably better known as a superfood for runners, as beetroot juice has been shown to increase endurance.
As a result of breeding, there is now a whole range of beets with different shapes and colours. Today’s growers can choose from beetroot, yellow beet, white beet and polka beet.
Preplant or direct sow beetroot
Beetroot can be both direct sown and pre-sown. To ensure a continuous harvest, we sow them in batches from March onwards. As there is a risk of the plants flowering if they are sown in soil that is too cold, we usually sow the first seed indoors. These seedlings are planted out when they are 5-10 cm tall.
From April or May, depending on the growing zone, it is also possible to direct sow beetroot. Varieties for winter storage can be sown as late as July. You can even start a round of beetroot in August to harvest only the leaves.
Whether you sow indoors or outdoors, cover the seeds with 1-2cm of soil and keep the soil moist during germination. A good distance between plants is 5-8 cm. Each seed is in fact a small collection of 2-6 seeds. Several pieces can thus look up from a single seed. It is possible to thin out the smallest ones, but we usually wait until the small ones can be picked up and used as leafy greens or primroses. The largest beet in each cluster is left in the country to grow further.
Beetroot is suitable for broadcasting, but with its decorative foliage it also looks good in neat rows. Suitable row spacing is about 30 cm. If necessary, cover with fibre cloth to prevent birds from eating the seeds.
Some plants that are good to grow together with beetroot are onions, cabbage, lettuce and radishes.
During the growing season, beetroot can often survive without any care other than watering and nutrition. As they are originally shore plants, they like mineral-rich nutrients such as seaweed or algomine. But regular watering with fertiliser is also fine, and you can add grass clippings or other organic material between the plants. This will keep moisture in the soil, smother the weeds and add extra nutrients as they decompose.
Beetroot can remain in the country for quite a while during late autumn. In a cool place in a lidded container they can be stored until spring winter. Alternatively, they can be stored in a shed or root cellar, if you have access to one.
Beetroot – delicious in cooking
Beetroot has a thousand ways to be cooked. Crazy good simply cooked and served with butter. But also try borscht and beetroot steaks or roast them in the oven with sea salt, garlic and a few sprigs of rosemary. Beetroot can be pickled, marinated or used raw. One of our regular side dishes is raw beetroot with apple, vinaigrette and capers.
A tip: when cooking beetroot, leave a small piece of the leaf. This prevents the colour from leaking into the water.
Blast and stalks can be used like chard. They are good for roasting with garlic, adding to a creamy stew or feeding into the juicer.
During the winter, we like to grow beetroot indoors to harvest small leaves. With a little extra light, we get shiny, lush, green-red leaves that are packed with nutrients. The seeds can also be germinated.
Author: Johanna Damm
Fact-checked by Erik Hoekstra
Last updated 2022-10-14