Beetroot

1. 1

   Sow direct

   Late March under cloches in southern England, mid-April outdoors elsewhere. Successional sowings every 3 weeks until early July give a continuous supply. 2 cm deep, 10 cm apart in rows 30 cm apart.

2. 2

   Soak seed (optional)

   Soaking beetroot seed in tepid water for an hour before sowing speeds germination. Not essential but useful in cold spring soil.

3. 3

   Thin seedlings

   Each beetroot seed is actually a cluster of 2–4 seeds — multiple seedlings come up in a tight clump. When seedlings are 5 cm tall, thin to the strongest one per station. The thinnings are edible (toss in salads).

4. 4

   Use Boltardy for early sowings

   Cold-snap-after-sowing makes most beetroot bolt (run to seed) instead of forming a root. Boltardy is the cultivar bred specifically to resist this. For sowings before late April, choose Boltardy.

5. 5

   Water in dry weather

   Water deeply once a week if the weather is dry, especially as the roots are swelling. Drought makes them woody and small.

6. 6

   Pull young

   Pull when roots are 5–7 cm across (golf-ball to tennis-ball size) for the best flavour. Anything larger gets coarse and woody. Pull alternate plants from a row to give the rest room to keep growing.

7. 7

   Store for winter

   Lift main-crop beets before the first hard frost. Twist (don't cut) the tops off 2 cm above the root — cutting bleeds them. Layer in damp sand in a wooden box; store in a frost-free shed. They keep until April.

Leaf miner creates pale tunnels; generally fairly robust otherwise.