Harvest to Table

Beets grow best in cool weather. Grow beets in spring and fall in warm summer regions, in summer and late fall in mild summer regions, and in summer and early fall in cool summer regions. For best fresh eating, harvest beats when they are half grown–about six weeks after sowing. Beets will still be good [...]

Beets are a cool-weather crop. Sow beets in the garden 2 to 3 weeks before the last average frost date in spring. Continue succession plantings every 3 weeks until temperatures reach 80°F. Beets can again be planted in late summer or early autumn 6 to 8 weeks before the first average frost in autumn. Beets [...]

Beets roots can be eaten raw or cooked and added to salads and soups. Beet greens and thinnings can be eaten raw in salads or cooked much like spinach. Planting Calendar. Beets grow best in cool weather, in early spring or autumn. Beets grown in cool weather will be sweet and crisp. The temperature during [...]

Sweet and smooth baby beets–red, yellow, and orange–added to sugary sugar snap peas and sweet baby carrots tossed with a tangy orange zest dressing and you have a seasonal salad that says Spring! You’ll have to search to find someone who doesn’t like this salad. Baby beets, sugar snap peas, and baby carrots will hit [...]

Baby beets are beets harvested just as they have started to round out. Leave these beets until they mature and you can call them table beets. Baby beets—just about the size of a ping-pong ball—have the most delicate taste and texture. Table beets—as big as your fist—still taste good, but don’t let them grow much [...]

Beets have a sweet, earthy taste. If you bake or roast them in their skins, you can enjoy that flavor at its most intense. Cook beets only until they just lose their rawness then combine them with meat, fish, grains, fruits, nuts, celeriac, fennel, or bitter greens. Once tender, beets can be sliced or diced [...]

  A great beet salad for summer: shred raw beets and toss with a vinaigrette and lots of chopped parsley. Flavor. The sweet flavor of a beet’s root is affected by the speed of the plant’s growth. Beets that are allowed to mature more slowly in cooler soil and weather will be sweeter than those [...]