Beetroot problems

[snarrigeo]

Hi,
I seem to be having a problem with my beetroot this year. The leaves seem to be turning brown, wilting then dying. I'm pretty new to this so any advice is greatly appreciated. I've read that this could be due to overwatering (we had our full months average rainfall in 3 days at the beginning of the month. I live in Shetland) or could be leaf miner. I don't see any larvae over the leaves though.

Any ideas?

Snarrigeo

[snarrigeo]

And here's some photos

[Scarlet]

i think it could be a leaf miner problem. You don't see the bugs on the leaves..if you pick a leaf off, hold it to the light, you may see it sandwiched between the layers? You can pick them off and dispose, don't put them in your compost bin.

Welcome yo the vine

[snarrigeo]

Ok, thanks scarlet

[Mr Bones]

Hi Snarrigio and welcome to the vine.
Echo what Scarlet says, it looks like it could be leaf miner which are larvae of a fly. Maybe pull off affected leaves and feed with seaweed tea. Fill a bucket with rinsed seaweed and top it up with fresh water. After a few days to a week skim off the liquid and feed the beets (it would probably stand to be diluted but you won't overfeed if it's on the strong side). Good luck with it.

[snarrigeo]

Thanks mr bones. I look forward to trying this. Will this actually kill the leaf miner? Can the seaweed tea be used as a general fertiliser? I have some parsnips growing in the corner of the garden. Could I use some on them?

[Mr Bones]

Seaweed tea is a really good fertiliser, it won't kill the leaf miner but will help the beets produce more leaf to replace those lost. Re parsnips, you could feed them if the soil is very poor but be wary of giving them too much as it might encourage the roots to fork.

[snarrigeo]

Ok thanks again mr bones