Beet

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-07 15:51

© Olga Grygorashyk / Rusmediabank.ru

Latin name: Beta vulgaris Family: Haze Categories: Vegetable crops

Beetroot (Beta vulgaris) - a plant that belongs to the Marevykh family has a two-year development cycle. Homeland - Mediterranean.

general characteristics

Known since ancient times, beets occupy an important place among vegetables. It is easy to explain this - first of all, the excellent taste of the plant, ease of growing, storage and preparation.

In the first year, beets form a rosette of leaves. The root crop is found in different shapes and colors of varying intensity. In shape, beetroots are conical, cylindrical and flat. The outer skin is also different - from burgundy to purple and black. The pulp is as usual crimson-red, and burgundy, purple, etc.

Leaves are whole, petiolate with an ovoid (heart-shaped) plate. In the second (but it happens also in the first) year of life, a flower-bearing stem is formed in the plant. Flowering starts two months later (or a little less) after planting and lasts a month or two. Beet flowers are rather small, bisexual. Seeds are located in seed-fruits - in each from one to seven pieces. The seeds are round and smooth.

Care rules

Temperature … Beets are very thermophilic. Moreover, it grows well even on salty soils. Seeds germinate at a fairly low temperature of 3-5 ° C. Of course, the optimum temperature is much higher and is approximately 21-25 ° C. At a lower temperature, the seeds germinate slowly, some of the seedlings die, the number of plants that form peduncles prematurely grows. An adult plant can survive short-term frosts. In frost, the plant dies. In this case, the best temperature for plant development is from 16 to 25 ° C.

The soil … The most suitable soil for beets is medium loamy. Beets grow worst of all on acidic soils. A good option is to grow the plant with a second crop after organic fertilizers have been used (early cabbage, cucumbers, potatoes). With insufficient fertility, only humus can be added to the soil (3-4 kg per meter). In the spring, mineral fertilizers are added to the soil.

Watering … Beets need increased moisture absolutely at all stages of growth. So special attention should be paid to regular watering. At the same time, the plant is poorly suited to waterlogged, cold and acidic soils, in which there is little nitrogen and potassium. Much better aerated soil, which has a slightly alkaline or neutral reaction of the soil solution. At the start of the growing season, there is an increased need for nitrogen, at the end of the growing season for potassium. As for phosphorus, it is evenly absorbed throughout the entire veteration period.

Sowing … Beets are sown in spring, about a week after carrots. Sowing can be carried out in the summer. The seeding rate is approximately 1, 1-2 g per square meter. Seeds are planted to a depth of three to four centimeters. On the eve of sowing, the seeds must be soaked in warm water (for a day).

Care consists in constant watering, removing weeds, loosening, top dressing (organic fertilizer is used in the phase of 3-4 true leaves). When 2-3 true leaves of the plant appear, the beets are thinned (leaving 2.5-3 cm between seedlings), after two to three weeks - by 6-8 cm, choosing young root crops for consumption. When roots begin to form, you can feed the plants with mineral fertilizers.

Harvesting … Beets must be harvested before frost. It is better to organize the storage of root crops in the basement (without sanding). Storage characteristics also depend on the variety.

To obtain seeds, planting of root crops is carried out in early spring and immediately watered. The testes are harvested after the seeds turn brown.