Planting Beets
Beet seeds are different from any other kind of seed. They’re not really a seed at all. Instead, what you receive is a dried fruit that contains several seeds.
For every seed you plant, you’ll get 2 to 5 sprouts typically. That leads to a lot of questions about spacing and how to plant them.
In this article, I’ll share two methods I use to plant beets and some other interesting facts.
When to Plant Beet Seeds
Most beet varieties take around 70 days to mature. Ideally, you’ll want to plant seeds when the soil is at least 55°F and you have at least 70 days left with temperatures ranging from 50°F to 75°F.
Beet seeds will germinate at 40°F but it takes much longer. Mature plants can also tolerate temperatures as low as 20°F so I do play on the fringes of my growing season sometimes.
For a list, state-by-state, including regions of when to plant beets, read this article.
Temperature for Growing Beets
Beets will germinate in soil temperatures between 40°F and 90°F, but I’ve found the best germination occurs when the soil is around 80°F.
They’re also pretty cold-hardy once they are established. Seedlings are in danger of frost though.
Having a soil thermometer handy is a good idea because air and soil temperatures vary greatly. I use this digital soil thermometer which doubles as a moisture meter as well. I’ve found it pretty accurate and it’s lasted a few years now.
Selecting the Type of Beets to Plant
Different beets have different flavors and uses. I personally prefer golden beets over red ones, but I grow a bit of both.
When I’m growing in late spring, I usually go for a bolt-resistant variety such as Robin Beets which are more heat tolerant than many of the mainstream types.
It wasn’t until I started growing beets that I discovered the entire plant is edible. The leaves are a great replacement for spinach and chard. They are all part of the same goosefoot family.
Personally, I like to harvest the leaves of Bull’s Blood and Touchstone beets for salads and stir-fries.
Here’s a complete list of my favorite types of beets, what I use them for, and their growing profiles.
Can You Plant Different Varieties of Beets Together
I’ve always grown different varieties together. Beets are biennials which means that they produce seeds in their second year, just like carrots.
I’ve never overwintered beets for seeds before. I always buy new seeds, but my local university did confirm that different varieties of beets can cross-pollinate.
If you’re growing some beets to save for seeds next year, I wouldn’t grow different types together. There’s no telling what you might get.
Selecting Beet Companion Plants
The great thing about beets is that they play nice with a lot of plants. The only vegetables I avoid planting with beets are swiss chard and spinach because they attack similar pests and in the past, that has caused me a lot of grief.
In my climate, beets grow almost all year. I take a short summer hiatus, but outside of that, they’re a great crop to grow.
In the spring I like to plant beets with tomatoes because they’ll provide shade. In the fall, I like to plant them with broccoli because the broccoli fixes any calcium problems in the soil.
Some of my other go-to companion plants for beets include:
Lettuce
Onions
Garlic
Tomatoes
Broccoli
You can read my complete list of 22 companion plants for beets here.
Where to Plant Beets
Sunlight Requirements
With the exception of late spring and early summer where my temperature can get warm fast, I always plant beets in a location that has 6+ hours of direct sunlight.
Beets love the sun, but they don’t like the heat. It’s a delicate balance. In early summer, I usually opt to plant them with a little less direct sun, about 4-6 hours per day.
Beets will grow in some shade, they just don’t grow as fast or as big. Keep in mind that different varieties have different size leaves too. Beets like Chioggia have more slender leaf structures, whereas a variety like Detroit Dark Red tends to take up a bit more room.
Soil Requirements
Overall, beets do best in soils with good aeration and drainage, are free of debris, and have a pH between 6.5 and 7. They will tolerate slightly alkaline oils, but not acidic.
Beets also require adequate amounts of the micronutrient boron. If the soil is too alkaline, there’s a good chance it will need a boron additive such as Azomite Rock Dust.
In the spring, I’ve found that my beets perform better in sandy loam soils or potting mixes such as ProMix. But in the fall, they do better in my heavier clay soil.
I have an entire article about soil for beets which includes how to test it and amend it. I also list my top 3 potting mixes for beets in that article.
Space and Depth
I always make sure there is at least 12” or more good soil for my beets to grow in. Beet roots can grow up to 36”; I’ve even had others tell me they’ve had longer ones. The deeper the soil, the better.
Also, avoid planting near any tree roots because the beetroot could run into them.
When growing beets in containers, select a container that is at least 12” deep, preferably 18”.
The amount of space needed to grow beets varies greatly based on what you want to use them for. When I want to grow big beets for slices on hamburgers, I space my beets almost an entire 12” apart from one another.
When I’m growing beets for baby beets to put in salads or stews, I only space them around 6” apart and multi-sow instead of thinning the beets. I’ll get to that later.
Set Up Irrigation
Vortex sprayer in my garden
Before planting, it’s important to think through how you want to provide water - especially if you want to install an automatic drip line of sorts.
My favorite automated system makes use of 1/4” poly tubing attached to vortex sprayers. One sprayer can water close to the soil and cover 4 to 6 plants.
As you can see in the picture, it can cover a good range and these are adjustable.
Drip emitters also work well, but you’ll need more of them. With these, you need to place one drip line at the base of each plant or seed cluster.
It’s easier to install all of this prior to planting. And of course, watering by hand works just fine too. If you use a garden wand or watering can, be careful that you don’t wash away the soil around the beet. It’s easy to do. Mimic a gentle rainfall, not a thunderstorm.
Pre-Planting Fertilizer
I don’t test my soil every time I plant, but I do test it every year or two. Unless I’m using a fresh bag of trusted potting mix, I use the Luster Leaf Rapitest to do an at-home soil test.
Depending on the soil test results, I will usually add blood meal and bone meal to the soil before planting. Typically I will add a tablespoon of each for a 3-foot-long row.
Just mix it into the top 3 to 4 inches of soil really well. If your soil is really deficient you may have to add more. But this amount is my standard pre-planting fertilizer when I don’t test the soil.
How to Plant Beets
The cool thing about beets is that you can plant them in several different ways depending on the outcome you want. I prefer to direct-sow beets directly in the garden, but contrary to what some people say, they can be transplanted.
Beets are unique because each seed is not actually a seed, but rather a dried fruit with several seeds inside of it. So no matter what you do, you’ll almost always have 2 to 5 beets sprout from one seed.
Here are the methods I’ve used successfully to plant beets.
How to Plant Beet Seeds in Rows
When I want to grow larger beets for slicing on a sandwich, I usually plant them in standard rows that are 6” apart. I know the universities will tell you 12” to 18” but that advice is for commercial farmers usually who deplete their soil and never add back to it.
For home gardeners who use compost and have more diversity, I’ve found that I don’t need that much room.
Make a 1/2-inch deep hole and drop one seed into it. Cover it with soil. Each hole/seed should be 2” apart.
When I grow smaller beets for chopping in salads and stews, I will plant beets in rows that are only 3-4” apart and space each beet 2” apart.
Multi-Sowing Spacing
Ok, everything I just shared with you about beet spacing is assuming that you will thin each seed down to one beet per seed. But you don’t have to do that.
You can multi-sow beets which means you let up to 3 grow together in one spot, similar to onions. As the beets get bigger, you pick the biggest one when it is baby beet size and this frees up space for the remaining beets to get bigger.
When I multi-sow beets, I space each seed 6” apart from all others in all directions. So I still space rows apart 6”, which is the same. But instead of planting a seed every 2” within that row, I would plant it every 6 inches.
Square Foot Gardening
When I’m growing in the food forest and not in traditional beds, I don’t use rows. The food forest is the space in our yard where I landscape with food instead of ornamental plants. It’s a mini permaculture experiment I’ve been doing for a couple of years now.
When I plant beets like this, I put one seed 1/2” deep every 3-4 inches apart. That’s 3 to 4 inches apart in all directions. So in one square foot, I can fit about 9 beets. I’ve had good success with this as well.
From Transplants
Beets can be started indoors. When I want to get an early start and it’s still really hot at the end of September, I start mine under a grow light with the right amount of red and white light. This encourages germination.
The trick to pulling this off is using the right seed starter cell. It took me forever to find one that worked well for beets.
Beet roots are sensitive and easily damaged so you want a seed starter cell that has a big enough hole at the bottom that you can gently push the cell out.
Most of them have tiny holes for drainage and that doesn’t work for beets because you’ll damage it during transplanting. This is the cell seed starter tray that I use and it works great.
If you’re starting seeds indoors in the winter, I might recommend a heat mat as well to warm the soil.
It’s pretty easy to get started. Fill each cell up with potting mix. I like to use ProMix for this. It’s a bit expensive, but it’s the best quality mix I’ve found for beets.
Plant one seed in each cell and place it under the grow light. I set my grow light to stay on for about 12 hours per day and within 5-10 days, the beet seeds will germinate.
Here’s an article about how to transplant beets for more information.
Succession Sowing Beet Seeds
Beets have a pretty long growing season in many parts of the country but they also have a short shelf-life in storage. Because of this, I will typically plant a row or two of beets every 2-3 weeks so I can enjoy fresh beets nearly all year.
Mulching & Watering
The key ingredient to germinating beets is moisture. Give your newly planted seeds some welcome water so that the top 2-3 inches of soil is moist. There’s no need to deep soak your garden because the seeds don’t have roots yet.
If the top 3 inches of soil dries out, your seeds may not germinate, or worse, they germinate and then die before they emerge. Consistent moisture is key.
Shade net to keep soil moist.
I typically set up a 40% shade net over my beet seeds for the first week or two. This helps prevent the soil from drying out on sunny days. I then remove that net once the seedling has true leaves. At that point, they need the sunlight to grow and produce sugars.
Another option is to mulch with garden straw or dried grass clippings after planting seeds. I don’t do this because when I have in the past it has created an environment that supports rolly polly invasions. Lots of bugs love moist soils with debris such as mulch and those same bugs ate all of my seedlings one year.
Since then, I’ve used the shade net instead, and then only after the plants have matured a bit, do I mulch around them.
How Long Does It Take for Beet Seeds to Germinate
In warm soil temperatures, my beet seeds germinate as fast as 5 to 12 days. If the soil is below 65°F, it might take as long as 15 to 20 days though, so be patient.
Planting Beets Recommended Reading
Beet Germination Time
Thinning Beets
