by In order to achieve high results in growing beets when sowing their seeds in the spring for seedlings and in open ground, you need to follow several simple rules for preparation and sowing. This applies to both the soil and the seed material itself. What nuances should you pay close attention to in the spring?
It is no secret that beets can be sown both for seedlings or even in a greenhouse, and directly into open ground. You can try to do it both ways, and at the same time compare them for success.
Preparing the soil for sowing or planting beets in the ground
Beet seeds or seedlings are grown in soil prepared for this purpose in advance in the fall. Thus, humus or rotted compost is added to sandy soil at the rate of 10 liters per 1 sq. m, as well as 1 tablespoon of superphosphate and potassium sulfate.
When growing beets on heavy clay soils, an additional 10 kg of peat and 5 kg of sand are added per square meter. If you need to reduce the acidity of the soil, add dolomite flour (200-400 g per 1 sq.m) or lime (200-400 g per 1 sq.m for sandy soil or 300-600 g per sq.m for loam and clay soil).
If you failed to prepare the beds in the fall, in the spring, when digging, you need to add 3-3,5 kg of two-year compost, 5 kg of peat and two glasses of ash per square meter. The last component can be replaced with 1 tbsp. superphosphate, 1 tsp. potassium sulfate and 1 tsp. urea, or 1 tbsp. complex mineral fertilizer, mixing it with 200-250 g of coarse sand.
Fresh manure should not be added as a fertilizer to beets: this contributes to the accumulation of nitrates in the fruit and increases the risk of fungal diseases of beets.
After applying the fertilizer, the soil should be dug up well to a depth of 15-20 cm, then the bed should be leveled and furrows should be made 3-4 cm deep at a distance of about 30 cm from each other.
Preparation of seeds for sowing
To make beet seeds sprout faster, they are soaked in a container with water at a temperature of 25-30°C and kept there for two days. The water is changed twice a day, in the morning and in the evening.
If you place the seeds in a gauze bag before immersing them in water, it will be much easier to refresh the water and get the seeds out. If you don’t have gauze at hand, you can strain the seeds through a colander.
The second option for germination is a wet napkin. Beet seeds are germinated there for 2-3 days, leaving the napkin in a room with a temperature of about 20°C. It is important not to forget to moisten the cloth in time so that the seeds do not dry out.
Thanks to such preparation, beets sprout about a week earlier than when sowing dry seeds. However, if you decide to sow beet seeds for seedlings, then the stage of their preliminary germination can be skipped.
Sowing beet seeds for seedlings
If you decide to try this method, you can start sowing around mid-April. By the time it’s time to plant beet seedlings in open ground, the soil in your garden will have warmed up to the required temperature of 8-10°C (around mid-May). When sowing seeds for seedlings in a greenhouse, early April will be suitable.
Sowing beets for seedlings is especially relevant in regions with short summers, such as Karelia or the Urals.
The seed material can be placed in ready-made store-bought soil or prepared by hand, taking turf or garden soil, washed sand, peat, humus or rotted compost in a proportion of 2:1:4:2. All components must be thoroughly mixed and for every 5 liters of such soil mixture add half a glass of wood ash.
The prepared soil is sifted and steamed in a steamer for an hour or watered with a solution of Fitosporin according to the instructions. The processed soil is poured into small boxes, lightly compacted and beet seeds are spread over the surface, and a layer of soil approximately 1 cm thick is poured on top. The soil is leveled and carefully watered – so that the seeds remain in the soil.
The crops are covered with polyethylene and left in a light place with a temperature of 18-20°C.
Despite the fact that the place for growing beet seedlings should be light, it is still better not to put them on the windowsill – otherwise the seedlings risk stretching out.
After emergence, the seedlings are hardened by reducing the temperature of their maintenance to 14-16°C. A couple of weeks after emergence, they can be fed with any complex fertilizer for seedlings, for example, Malyshok, Krepysh, Fertika, etc.
Seedlings should be transplanted into open ground after they have 2-3 true leaves.
It is best to plant beets in a place where beans, cucumbers, potatoes, peppers, carrots, pumpkins or eggplants have grown before. Experienced gardeners who grow seedlings for sale claim that in June, beet seedlings can be planted in beds that have just been cleared of cabbage and tomato seedlings. But to do this, the leaves must be removed from the beet sprouts – otherwise they may not take root.
According to experienced gardeners, the seedling method of growing beets helps to grow a harvest of root crops almost a month faster than with traditional sowing in beds.
Sowing beet seeds in open ground in spring
The seed material is placed in the ground at the moment when the soil has stably warmed up to at least 10°C. Depending on the variety, the seeds are sown in open ground at different times. In central Russia, this time usually falls in mid-May for early varieties and early to mid-June for mid-season and late varieties.
If late variety beet seeds are sown before the due date, the root crops will be very hard and tough, and even light-loving sprouts in slight shade can result in crop loss.
If your plot is located in a swampy lowland, then for this vegetable crop you will have to create high beds, while observing certain rules.
The pre-prepared furrows are watered well and seeds are placed in them at a distance of 8-10 cm from each other (for single-sprout varieties – 4-5 cm). The crops are covered with soil, mulched with peat or humus and compacted.
During recurrent frosts, crops should be covered with non-woven material.
If you do everything correctly, then in a week the beet seeds will sprout, and subsequently you will have a rich harvest of sweet root vegetables.
