Beetroot and aubergines

Beetroot is back in fashion – and rightly so. There’s a lot more to this healthy British vegetable than people think and in recent years it’s become very popular with gardeners.

Beetroot often is seen as a bit of a plodding vegetable, often in the background, always there and much the same.

Yet the first beetroot of the autumn is always utterly gorgeous bringing fresh flavours to a salad meal.

So how do you grow the tastiest beetroot? The answer lies in the soil, the seed and in timing.

Sowing

First sowings are most successful indoors. Sow three or four beetroot seeds into 4cm modules of a tray of 40 then thin them a little when still small. Sow in March in a cold greenhouse or outdoors straight into the ground in early April depending on the weather. Outdoors the seedlings will appear in about 15 days, depending on the weather. Each seed planted will result in a cluster of three or four seedlings. Remove the weakest seedlings, leaving only the strongest for each seed sown. When the seedlings reach 5cm (2in) high, thin them to their final distance apart. Beetroot’s ideal soil is medium to light, although a heavy but well-dug soil will also be ideal. What it definitely does not like is a soil which has recently been manured – this will cause the roots to be misshapen.

Growing

Growth of the barely visible dark leaves may be slow and disappointing at first but don’t despair. The leaves are not too sought after by slugs and ought to survive but fleece can be used to bring the harvest forward by a week or two. Remember that fleece also makes weeds grow faster too! Beetroot will definitely appreciate a thorough watering if the conditions become dry. This will encourage them to grow quickly and the roots will be more tender and tasty.

Harvesting

Beetroots in modular clumps always grow at different speeds so individual larger roots can be twisted out leaving more room for remaining bulbs to grow. In this way a small, well weeded and well composted patch can be harvested over a two month period. Remember you can also eat the beetroot leaves in a similar way to spinach beet as long as they have not grown tough with age.

Problems

The first tiny leaves of outdoor sowings can sometimes appeal to birds or woodlice and this is one of the reasons many gardeners like to get the plants established indoors.

Did you know?

• Beetroot has one of the highest sugar contents of any vegetable. Up to ten per cent of beetroot is sugar, but it is released slowly into the body rather than the sudden rush that results from eating chocolate.
• In early times, its medicinal properties were more important than its eating qualities and it was used to treat ailments including fevers, constipation, wounds and various skin problems. At that time, the roots were long and thin like a carrot. The rounded root shape that we are familiar with today was not developed until the 16th century.
• Beetroots come in all shapes and sizes but the most common is round and deep red in colour. Other varieties are yellow, white, and even candy-striped with red and white concentric circles.

Country Gardener’s pick of the varieties

• Bolthardy – If you are not yet a connoisseur of beetroot, go for ‘Bolthardy’. This variety is resistant to bolting and can be sown as early as the weather permits. It keeps extremely well, lasting into early spring – the flavour is excellent, fresh and sweet. Sow in April – July.
• Pablo – a good looking beetroot with uniform shape and smooth skin producing a classic round globe with bright red texture. One for the traditionalists. Sow in April – July.
• Burpees Golden – a Victorian type of beetroot with a texture which is orange and gold more than the classical red. It produces healthy larger than normal round globes. One feature of this variety is the leaves which are especially tasty when cooked. Sow April/May.
• Cheltenham Green Top – this is a later variety which will grow well into the winter giving longer narrow beetroots. It is very resistant to frost and is popular with many gardeners as it can be planted in October.

Aubergines

You need to remember one word if you are thinking about growing aubergines – heat. It’s the key factor so almost without exception the best results will come from growing them under cover. Without sufficient warmth, growth is slow and fruiting inconsequential. Aubergine fruits come in many shapes, sizes and colours. White or violet ones such as Rosa Bianca are no more difficult to grow than the traditional dark purple ones. Growth of all the varieties is dramatically slower at temperatures below 20 degrees C (68 degrees F).

Although tomatoes and aubergines are closely related, both are in the same family (the Solanaceae, which includes the potato, sweet pepper, petunia and deadly nightshade). If you do try to grow them out of doors you will need, even in the south, a sheltered position and some form of protection to get them off to a good start. Not only do aubergines need higher temperatures they also need protection from wind. And while tomatoes will happily ripen four to six trusses of fruit outside you need to limit the number of fruits on an aubergine.

The most popular way to grow them is in an unheated greenhouse.

Sowing

Sow in February or March but remember the temperature! Seedlings emerge and grow more slowly than tomatoes but their potting on requirements remains the same.

Growing

By late spring move the growing seedlings to a larger pot which will be its home from now on. An early stout cane provides the support for what on warm sunny days in the greenhouse will start to really move on. Correct watering makes a difference. The initial slow growth means care must be taken to avoid drowning the roots. But any hot sunny day will result in rapid evaporation.

Aubergines are best picked before they become too seedy and bitter and watch for any dulling of skin colour or abnormality of shape such as swelling across the middle which reveals the end of growing and the start of seeding. They can keep growing well into the autumn but common sense will normally show when they are ready for picking.

Problems

Slugs enjoy aubergines so block any access to the fruit and one real danger for indoor plants is red spider mite. The predator phytoseiulus is a very reliable organic remedy.

Country Gardener’s pick of the varieties

• Moneymaker – a name which tomato growers will know well, this variety is one of the easiest to grow and produces long black fruit.
• Barbentane – many gardeners find this the best variety to grow as it has been successful in cooler conditions. Sown in February to March it also has the advantage of being ready to harvest in high summer rather than the autumn.
• Rosa Bianca – something different as this variety produces a distinctive white fruit which is rounder than the traditional fruit. Great fun to grow and also ready for July given a good summer.