How To Grow Giant Beets

My giant beets – Many times I’m asked, “How did you get those huge beets?”  This is because my beets consistently weigh in around 2.5 lbs. to 3.3 lbs  And… they are sweet, non woody and absolutely delicious!!!

So what are my secrets?

Soil and Fertilizer

• Before I start, I make sure my soil is very fluffy and has lots of organic matter.  I then fertilize with compost tea once or twice in the season and I add some mycorrhiza.

When to Plant

• In the Northeast Coast I plant in early to mid-April, when all danger of frost has passed… West Coast or Southern folks should plant as soon as the weather is cool, as it is a cool weather crop.

Spacing

• The next most important step occurs very early on when I plant the seeds.  I space them around 4” apart and place no more than two seeds per hole.

Timing or Plucking

• You also must remember that the beet is actually the root of the plant… so once the seeds germinate I make sure that only ONE plant is left in the hole…. and I pluck out the others.  – (I do my plucking before the first true leaves on the plant fully develops).   If you wait too long to thin the seeds you will not get any root development.  You will have a lot of greens, which are delicious too, but no roots, which means no BEETS.  See video for the best time to thin them out.

  

Harvesting

Then I wait.  As the beets develop I begin to harvest every other one when they get 3” thick.

This means that the space between the remaining beet plants gets wider… allowing the beets (each plant’s root) to continue to develop.

Then I leave them in the ground a few months.  Around mid-July I begin to harvest the rest of the crop.  Usually, I have quite a few very large beets… about 6 beets in each 3’ row.

For a great beet salad recipe http://latingrannyseasonings.com/http:/www.latingrannyseasonings.com/sauces/mayonnaise-or-tartar-sauce-salsa-de-mayonesa-o-salsatartara/