So eat up. Did you leave one in the ground too long? Also not a problem. Just give it a nice bath in olive oil and salt, and bake it low and slow in the oven. Generally speaking, it's best to harvest vegetables from the kitchen garden a little smaller than you would find them at the grocery store. Kitchen garden varieties are different than the grocery varieties that are grown to endure long storage and lots of trucking.
So enjoy your beets on the smaller side for the best flavor and quality. Roots are actually the third step in learning to set up and grow a kitchen garden. So if you're already growing beets, you're clearly on your way to becoming a kitchen garden pro. Water the plants well weekly if it does not rain.
Beet root systems can reach 36 inches or more if adequate soil moisture is available. Keep the beet plants free of weeds which use nutrients and moisture. Scratch the soil next to the plants with a rake or hand tool to prevent crusting. Do not work the soil more than 1 inch deep or the root systems may be injured. Begin thinning the beets as soon as they get crowded in the row. Young tops make excellent greens. After thinning, the plants should be 2 to 3 inches apart.
Beets should be ready to harvest 7 to 8 weeks after they are planted. Young, tender tops often have a mild quality, but the greens can be used until they get large and strong flavored. Young plants can be cooked with the root and top together, or you can use the root alone when it is the size of a golf ball or larger.
Pull the plants and cut off the root. If the tops are to be used, wash and place them in plastic bags in the refrigerator for 1 or 2 days. Roots will keep 1 to 2 weeks in plastic bags in the refrigerator. If all the beets are not used, pull them and place in a compost pile or spade them into the soil.
Many insecticides are available at garden centers for homeowner use. Sulfur also has fungicidal properties and helps control many diseases. Before using a pesticide, read the label and always follow cautions, warnings and directions.
Also consider a fall planting. As an example, in growing zone 5, you can start beet seeds outdoors mid-May to mid-June. Beetroots will be ready to harvest in July or August. If you did a fall planting in August to mid-September, beets will be ready late September through early November.
Harvesting beets can take some muscle, so you can make it easier on yourself by thoroughly watering the beets you want to pick one or two days in advance. Then, take hold of the stems at their base and pull until they release from the ground. Alternatively, you can dig a group of beets out with a shovel, but this increases the chance of damaging other beets around it. Since many people prefer to pull up small batches of beets at a time, the first method is most common.
The good news is that if you pick beets on time, they store well for up to a couple of weeks in the refrigerator. Store the greens in plastic bags in the crisper drawer. They will last a week. Of course, you can also pickle, can, or freeze beets so that you can enjoy your large harvest year-round. Beets are a fast-growing root vegetable, reaching maturity within two months.
Since they grow best in cooler weather, you can plant them in both spring and fall. In fact, if you live in a place with mild winters, you can even squeeze in a third planting season. You may have planted them and forgotten about them or perhaps you were on vacation when they reached maturity. Depending on your climate, overripe beets become soft and wilted. Instead, just snip off the greens and eat them. Make sure soil remains moist for optimal germination.
Soak seeds for 24 hours prior to planting to speed up germination. Check out this video to learn how to plant beets. How to Grow Beets Mulch and then water regularly with about 1 inch of water per square foot per week.
Beets need to maintain plenty of moisture in order to grow well. Weed as needed, but be gentle around young plants; beets have shallow roots that are easily disturbed. Supplementing with extra fertilizer is usually not necessary. If you do fertilize, go easy on nitrogen; excess will cause an abundance of greens but tiny bulbs beneath the soil. How to Harvest Beets 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. 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! Round, red root. Excellent for canning. Beets have long been considered an aphrodisiac: Ancient Greeks thought that Aphrodite, their goddess of love, used them to enhance her appeal.
Romans believed that beet juice brought on amorous feelings. Vegetable Gardener's Handbook. What do you want to read next? Swiss Chard. Will my beets be OK if we get a 32 degree frost tonight?. Wash well, cook whole til soft, cool, slip the tough skin right off. Going to start in March. I like the second name since the first makes me think the beets are only for the birds. Can you harvest the greens before you harvest the beet? Will it harm the beet? Sign up for our email newsletter by entering your email address.
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