Beets at a Glance
Learn how to grow beets for healthy salads and colorful meals.
February/March 2012
By Barbara Pleasant
The chart below offers tips for growing each type of beet, plus a list of the varieties we recommend. Learn more about organic beet cultivation in All About Growing Beets.
Beta vulgaris var. vulgaris
Firm, red beets ideal for roasting, boiling or canning.
Young leaves are good in salads; use older ones as cooking greens.
(50 to 65 days)
‘Boro’ (F1)
‘Cylindra’
‘Detroit Dark Red’
‘Guardsmark Chioggia’
‘Red Ace’ (F1)
‘Shiraz Tall Top Beet’
B. vulgaris var. vulgaris
Often slightly slower-growing compared with red beets.
Roasted roots have a buttery texture and mild, nutty flavor.
(55 to 65 days)
‘3 Root Grex’
‘Burpee’s Golden’
‘Chioggia’
‘Touchstone Gold’
‘White Albino’
B. vulgaris var. vulgaris
Can be left to grow larger than other beets.
Harvest after first fall frost but before hard freezes damage
the roots.
(60 to 70 days)
‘Crosby’s Egyptian’
‘Flat of Egypt’
‘Lutz Green Leaf’
B. vulgaris var. crassa
Greens and huge roots both make excellent forage for poultry and
other animals.
Mangel beets are most palatable to livestock when cut into small pieces.
(70 to 100 days)
‘Giant Yellow Eckendorf’
‘Mammoth Red’
‘Yellow Cylindrical’
Contributing editor Barbara Pleasant gardens in southwest Virginia, where she grows vegetables, herbs, fruits, flowers and a few lucky chickens. Contact Barbara by visiting her website or finding her on Google+.
