When and how to plant beets with seeds: step-by-step instructions for beginner gardeners

Beets are so popular that they are grown on every continent except Antarctica. And this is not surprising, because this root vegetable is not only rich in vitamins and minerals, but is also edible from the roots to the tips of the leaves.

Even a novice gardener can cultivate healthy vegetables. In this article we will tell you in detail about when and how to plant beets with seeds.

Selection and preparation of seeds for planting

Varieties beets divided into early, mid-ripening and late (depending on the ripening period).

Among the early varieties, the popular ones are Early Vodan, Carillon, Red Ball, Mona, Egyptian and Gribovskaya Ploskaya, Action, Nastenka. The harvest of such beets can be harvested 80-110 days after emergence.

Mid-season varieties include Bordeaux-237, Sonata, Crimson Ball, Valya, Detroit, Cold-resistant 19. These beets will ripen in 110-130 days.

Late beets are represented by such varieties as Salatnaya, Matrona, Tsilindra. Late-ripening beets are harvested 130-145 days after germination.

The crop is sown with both dry and pre-soaked seeds. More friendly and faster shoots are ensured by soaked and germinated seed material. This is easily explained, because beet seeds are dense and wrinkled and they need a lot of moisture and time to germinate.

For soaking, use regular warm water.

Important! Sprouted seeds are sown in well-moistened soil, otherwise the sprouts will die.

Prepared seeds will sprout in about 3-4 days. Dry – after 12-15 days. The fresher the seeds, the better germination they provide.

Timing for sowing beet seeds

Planting dates affect germination and quality indicators.

Choosing a landing date

When should I start sowing beets in open ground? The specific date is determined by the climate of the region and the type of root crop. For early varieties, the soil should be warmed to +8-10 °C. Cold-resistant varieties can be sown at soil temperatures of +5-6 °C.

Need to know. Beet seedlings are sensitive to low temperatures. Cold weather and frost can destroy the entire crop.

Mid-season and late varieties are sown in early June. By the end of the summer season they are fully ripe.

Determining planting dates according to the lunar calendar

You can choose a specific sowing date based on the lunar calendar. All root crops are sown during the waning moon.

The most favorable days in 2019:

1. May – 23;
2. June – 9-11.
3. The full moon is considered the most unlucky time for any sowing work.

Crop rotation rules

The same crop rotation rules apply to beets as to other root crops. Do not choose the same place for planting for more than two years in a row. The area for beets is reused after 4-5 years.

Recommended predecessors and neighbors

Where should I plant beets next? Good predecessors of beets are legumes, cabbage, tomatoes, cucumbers, and eggplants.

Root vegetables love to grow along the edges of the bed. In the central part, carrots, onions, celery, kohlrabi, cucumbers, cauliflower.

How to plant beet seeds correctly

Proper placement of plants in the garden bed will allow you to get the maximum possible yield per unit area.

Sowing instructions

Soaked or dry seeds should be properly planted in pre-moistened soil. 2-3 furrows are cut on the bed with an interval of 15-20 cm. A distance of 40-50 cm is maintained between the beds. The seeds are placed in the furrows at a distance of 8-10 cm from each other.

There is no need to plant the seeds deeply. The sprouts will not have enough oxygen and seedlings will not appear. And finely sown seeds will not have enough moisture.

The choice of optimal sowing depth depends on the soil. The seed is buried 2 cm in heavy soil, and 3-4 cm in light soil.

Advice from experienced farmers:

• beets are sown in moist and warmed soil; the seeds need moisture and warmth to germinate;
• seedlings are carefully thinned out; dense plants will negatively affect the yield;
• the distance between the rows should not be too large; weeds will begin to actively grow in the free space;
• Fresh manure is not used as fertilizer.

What mistakes to avoid:

1. Inexperienced summer residents plant beet seeds too deep in the ground, fearing that it will not have enough moisture. As a result, due to lack of oxygen, the seeds do not germinate.
2. When thinning the seedlings for the first time, excess plants are pinched or trimmed with scissors. If you pull them out, you can damage the roots of healthy shoots.
3. Beets are sensitive to lack of sunlight. For sowing, choose a well-lit place.

Beet planting schemes

The answer to the question at what distance from each other to plant seeds depends on the chosen method of planting root crops.

Experienced gardeners use several schemes, choosing the most convenient one for themselves:

1. The so-called belt method is the alternation of wide row spacing with rows of crops. The grooves are laid along the area at intervals of 40-50 cm.Leave a distance of 8-10 cm between the seeds.
2. String method. The beds are formed at a distance of 25-30 cm from each other. Seed holes are made across each bed.
3. Landing tape. Beet seeds, glued to a strip of thin paper, are laid out in furrows and sprinkled with soil.
4. Growing beets through seedlings. Seedlings are prepared 1-2 months before planting in open ground. Plants are planted at intervals of 10 cm and a distance of 15-25 cm between rows.

Care

After emergence of seedlings, plantings need to be thinned regularly. Further care consists of watering, fertilizing, loosening the soil, removing weeds, and protecting against pests.

Feeding

After the first thinning, the plants are fed with mineral fertilizers. Fertilizer is applied in liquid or dry form when the first true leaves appear.

Average dosage: 30 g ammonium nitrate, 80 g superphosphate, 35 g potassium chloride per 10 liters of water. This volume of liquid is used to irrigate 15 linear meters of row. Superphosphate and potash fertilizers are well replaced by ash.

Fertilizers are applied a second time 20 days after the first feeding.

Important! Root crops are fertilized until mid-July. Later application of fertilizing leads to the accumulation of nitrates in the vegetable.

Experienced gardeners water beets once a month with a weak solution of table salt. This increases the sweetness of the vegetable and enriches the soil with sodium.

Watering

Particular attention is paid to watering during the period of growing green mass. After the leaves form, watering is reduced. Excess moisture leads to cracking of root crops, which worsens keeping quality vegetables in winter.

Excess moisture also has a bad effect on the taste of beets.

Loosening the soil and removing weeds

In August, some summer residents stop caring for beets, believing that the job is already done. This approach is wrong, since at this time the root crop increases its mass and still needs oxygen, light and moisture. Loosening is especially necessary if beets grow in heavy soil.

Pests and diseases

Pests and diseases pose the greatest danger at the initial stage of plant growth. The following insects significantly reduce crop yield:

1. The beet weevil is a black beetle 1-1.5 cm long, whose body is covered with scales. The pest overwinters in the soil where beets were grown. It feeds on young plants, causing their death. Can completely destroy crops.
2. The beet flea beetle is a small black beetle 1–2 mm long. The pest spends the winter under plant debris and in the spring greedily eats young beet greens.
3. The beet leaf miner is a gray insect 6–8 mm long. Lays eggs in beet leaves, forming so-called mines (swells) with larvae inside. Affected plants die or produce poor harvests.

Beets are not immune to diseases. We list the most common of them:

1. Corneater. Disease affecting seedlings. Caused by pathogenic microorganisms. Recognizing the disease is not difficult. A constriction forms on the stem, the root darkens and rots. Such seedlings often die. The surviving shoots then develop slowly. The harvest is small and poorly stored. Choosing high-quality seed material will help protect against disease.
2. Fomoz. It appears on root crops in the form of dry rot. When stored, such root vegetables quickly decompose, forming foci of infection. The fungus overwinters on plant debris and in root crops during storage.The disease is transmitted by seeds, and the root beetle develops on the seedlings of such seeds.
3. Cercospora – one of the most dangerous diseases of beet crop. The causative agent of the disease is a fungus that infects the leaves. Spots with a gray coating form on the greenery, leading to the death of the plant. The causative agent of the disease spends the winter in infected parts of plants. Beet seed can also be a source of infection.

Pest and disease control

Timely removal of weeds, compliance with crop rotation, and tillage in the fall with the application of fertilizers help to avoid damage to crops by pests and diseases.

The sowing site is chosen away from the plants, which can be a source of diseases and dangerous insects.

Need to know. Plant remains are a wintering site for dangerous insects. Cleaning the area in the fall and burning plant debris deprives pests of shelter for the winter.

When choosing seed material, choose varieties and hybrids that are resistant to disease.

If the disease appears, the affected leaves are torn off and removed from the area.

Read also:

Why beet juice is beneficial: prepare the healing drink yourself.

The best ways to prepare beet leaves for the winter and recipes from them.

The benefits and harms of beets for the human body.

Conclusion

Even a novice gardener can cope with growing beets from seeds. Soaking and preparing seeds for planting improves germination and allows you to get an early harvest. In open ground, planting and caring for beets does not require much effort.