Bob Flowerdew

with Bob Flowerdew, AG’s organic gardening expert

‘Boltardy’ is very tolerant of extremes in weather, which makes this beetroot ideal for early sowings and longer harvests

Bob’s top tips for the week

Striking ‘Burpees Golden’ is a vibrant-yellow multigerm beet that is very sweet and can be harvested from July until November

r e s t r i c t e d P r e s s

With monogerm beetroot varieties. such as ‘Moneta’ , there is little or no need for thinning –good news for the time-poor

Beets are the best

If you’re after quick, reliable crops that are high on taste and nutritional value, you can’t beat beetroot, says Bob

O you remember Woolworths, was (and still is) so popular is due to it the chain that sold lots of small being so easy and reliable to grow. You household items? Among its just sow the seed (there are a number

Dlines it sold packets of seeds of seeds in each husk, though you can and annually announced the largest veg now get ‘mono’ sorts with one or two number sold, which, if I remember seedlings) and then thin them. rightly, belonged to beetroot. Then you just keep off the birds with a

I found this odd, but on bit of bent chicken netting, scarers or examination it made sense. whatever. Birds just love the Other than birds eating their small leaves and will razor leaves, beetroot doesn’t these off. You might even suffer many problems. sow beets literally ‘for the Sure, they seldom do well birds’ if you did not want if overcrowded and may them for yourself. be miserable in poor, dry If you want decent soil. However, they are beets, though, don’t easily grown to moderate It’s important to thin forget to thin those size with little care and they are highly productive when multigerm beet seedlings, but you can eat the thinnings! seedlings. Fortunately, you can eat the thinnings (try fed and watered well. Also, in them stir fried) and the small the days before refrigeration, beetroot beets, from young and tiny until really crops stored for months (and years large, though eventually they will when boiled, peeled, sliced and get a bit fibrous. submerged in vinegar). Try beet baked, especially the yellow

I reckon the main reason beetroot ones. You can also eat their leaves as spinach, and there are even improved varieties. Chard has the same beet

“They are so ancestor, bred stalks that can to give thick, wide chunky be stewed. Then there is easy and reliable sugar beet, a super-sweet white beet. Most impressive of all are mangolds or to grow” mangels, which are giant beets for feeding stock. These have been grown to over 130lb (59kg). Beet that! When watering, be careful

1not to splash the flowers of cucumbers, courgettes, marrows and squashes, as this will often start rots.

Tie sweet potato vines off

2the ground as they will root anywhere they touch and divert energy from your crop.

Thin fruits of big beefsteak-type

3tomato plants like ‘Marmande’ (pictured) to something achievable – say, one per truss, three per plant.

Since it’s Father’s Day, why

4not ask if there’s a job in the garden your dad’s been avoiding and then do it for him?