Pathetic beetroot

[Marb67]

Well I sowed 3 beetroot seed to a cell using in date bolthardy. I used john innes seed sowing compost with some vermiculite. Cells were clean and moistened compost. They were sowed 8th march and still mostly no show except tiny pathetic shoots that never seem to get bigger. In fact some have withered, stems going thin and whispy. Kept in cold greenhouse out of direct sunlight. I just cant seem to grow beetroot.

[Penellype]

I find beetroot terribly slow. The seed packet (Boltardy) implies sowing to harvest in about 3 months, ie sow March to July, harvest June to October. I sow mine in April and have given up expecting anything to eat much before November. Germination is usually poor - yours looks about par for the course.

[mrbadexample]

Try sowing direct when it's warmed up a bit? I also find beetroot to be a slow starter.

I also find that ones I transplant don't seem to do as well as ones sown direct.

[Marb67]

I find beetroot terribly slow. The seed packet (Boltardy) implies sowing to harvest in about 3 months, ie sow March to July, harvest June to October. I sow mine in April and have given up expecting anything to eat much before November. Germination is usually poor - yours looks about par for the course.

That’s cold comfort to some extent. Literally.

[Marb67]

Try sowing direct when it's warmed up a bit? I also find beetroot to be a slow starter.

I also find that ones I transplant don't seem to do as well as ones sown direct.

I followed Charles Downings advice by sowing 3 to a module and he has great success which is why I thought it would be fine.

[Bluenowhere]

Think CD is a green fingered wizard.

Last year I sowed direct in mid June (when I got back from holiday so could water them). Grew well and got a nice crop. Had tried some in a seed tray earlier and transplanted with variable success.

[bikermike]

what variety are you growing?
I have had good results (using pretty similar methods to the OP) with Detroit and Perfect 3. My mum has had no luck with boltardy

I can't say that I do anything specifically different for Beetroot, but my method is
- two seeds minimum to cell
- ordinary multipurpose compost
- propagator cover over it
- leave in greenhouse from mid-ish march/april until growing well and planting out.

I think age of seed is an issue, I've had no luck with my Perfect 3 this year, (but it is v.old). I'm hoping the Detroit comes to the rescue or I'm going to look silly...
I've had no obvious problems with transplanting, but anything sown from seed on the plot tends to get slug-nobbled, so I've not bothered.

Incidentally, I assume you have checked you trays for unwelcome guests?

[veggiechicken]

Think CD is a green fingered wizard.

Last year I sowed direct in mid June (when I got back from holiday so could water them). Grew well and got a nice crop. Had tried some in a seed tray earlier and transplanted with variable success.

CD is a professional grower - he's been growing veg for years and has refined what he does through experience to fit his location and soil.
I like his books and how freely he shares his knowledge. Even though I've watched them, I know that his results will be a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooottt better than mine.

[Bigmallly]

They are a lot better than mine Marb..........mine are still in the packet.....

[mat]

I never sow beetroot before May now, even living in relatively warm Somerset. If it's still cold in May, I'll wait till June. I must have wasted bucketloads of beet seed over the years, by sowing when the packet recommends instead of waiting for the weather to warm up!

[Chippy Minton]

They look fine to me, I sowed chard (similar plant I'm guessing) about 4 or 5 weeks ago in very similar modules and they're maybe twice as big now and some still popping up.

[Cadalot]

Here are mine, a few gaps but I'm going to pop a seed in those that have not germinated yet and about to sow the second wave

[WeeGarden]

CD is a professional grower - he's been growing veg for years and has refined what he does through experience to fit his location and soil.
I like his books and how freely he shares his knowledge. Even though I've watched them, I know that his results will be a loooooooooooooooooooooooooooottt better than mine.

and here I was thinking that as long as I bought the F1 calabrese that I too would be harvesting perfect heads by June! ☺️

I direct sowed about 9 days ago and went away for a week. Thought that they hadn't germinated yet, but this evening I saw a little red leafless stem �� Have you checked for slug trails?

[4Shoes]

I tend to use the gutter method.

This year going to put a string in bottom of 1.2m gutter. Theory is that lifting string and seedlings will slip down gutter easier. Do same for peas.

Not tried modules, but perhaps now is a time to give it a go. Think an experiment is called for

1.2m gutter. 1.2m Modules (or wee pots), 2.4m line beet.... If I remember

[Aunty Social]

Chioggia Beetlings



Here are my chioggia beetoids, sown on 24 March. So as others said, they grow very slow. What I think helped me was a post I saw here on the GYO forums on chitting: beetroot seed chitted took 4 days or so to sprout, and I popped them in fibre pots: those have come up well, though I can see I've wasted space by only putting one or two seeds per pot.

Fingers crossed they grow well in raised bed - last year the beetlings grew huge leaves, but because the soil was clay, no bigger than a radish, beet-wise. I've bought some rainbow plug plants to compare with my sowings. Good luck to you!