[hogwarden]

 :)My family have `found` beetroots and have eaten almost the lot. I have three rows coming along fine and now the roots are about the size of my thumb-can you hasten them by feeding..?- to get them up to a good edible cooking size any quicker??
 Are they better growing under fleece or poly, or just wait for nature to do it`s best-I`m sure I`ll end up with a beetroot void this year if I can`t accelerate them!

[Aunt Sally]

Giving them water with a little liquid feed in will do nothing but good.  The like a sprinkle of salt along their row too.

[arugula]

Giving them water with a little liquid feed in will do nothing but good.  The like a sprinkle of salt along their row too.

That's interesting Aunty, what does the salt do?

[Springlands]

Giving them water with a little liquid feed in will do nothing but good.  The like a sprinkle of salt along their row too.

Aunt Sally - when you say they like a sprinkle of salt do you mean over the actual plants or along side the rows. I have never heard of this before and would be interested to know how it improves the plants and if is works for other veggies as well. The only time I salt my veggies is during cooking  

[arugula]

Echo, echo, echo.......

[Aunt Sally]

Yes, a little sprinkle of table salt along the row when they are babies.  It's a plant that originated in coastal areas and a little salt (avoid the leaves) makes it feel right at home

[arugula]

Yes, a little sprinkle of table salt along the row when they are babies.  It's a plant that originated in coastal areas and a little salt (avoid the leaves) makes it feel right at home

Thanks Aunty, that'll be why we're quite successful with beetroot anyway.

[starry]

would the liquid feed be tomato feed?? as my beetroot are so slow this year its going to be too late if they dont hurry up !!   

[Salmo]

Tomato feed is fine as it is high potash.

The origin of putting salt on beet was that scientists found that it could be substituted for potash and was cheaper, which is why farmers use it on sugar beet. Beet are tolerant of salt as they originate from beet found along our sea shores. I would stick with a tomato feed.

Salt can destabalise clay soils and make them go sad. Probably not the amount we are talking about. When the sea floods farmland that is the main damage.

[Aunt Sally]

 

Were not talking loads of salt Salmo - just I tiny sprinkle 

[sunshineband]

To add to the advice already given --- beetroot yield is affected by competition from weeds, both within the row and in between rows, so pull out any you see asap 

[Yorkie]

To add to the advice already given --- beetroot yield is affected by competition from weeds, both within the row and in between rows, so pull out any you see asap 

Weeds, that is, not beetroots   

[sunshineband]

Yes, I did mean weeds