Beet root

B.N – Beta vulgaris L.

Family – Chenopodiaceae
Common name – Common beet, garden beet, red beet, table beet and chukandar
Chromosome no. – 2n = 18
Origin – Asia
Introduction –
 Beetroot is a root vegetable which is a sweet, healthy vegetable full of antioxidants.
 It is consumed in many ways like in raw form, as vegetable juice, boiled fermented,
dried and also as a food supplement in powdered form.
 Deep red colour of beetroot is due to the presence of pigment called betalain.
 Beetroot can also be used as a natural colour to colour different food products.
 Beetroot is a great source of vit A, vit B, vit C
 In India, beetroot is cultivated in Maharashtra, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, Arunachal
Pradesh followed by Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Karnataka.
 Beets have been used for a long time as treatment for anemia.
Varieties –
Ooty 1, Crimson Globe, Detroit Dark Red, Red Ball, Early wonder, Burpees red ball are the
popular varieties.
Nutritional Value per 100g –
Sugar – 7g
Carbohydrates – 9.56g
Dietary fiber – 2.8g
Fat – 0.17g
Protein – 1.61g
Soil
Beets can be produced on a wide variety of soils but deep, well drained loam and Sandy loamy
soil is suitable for the cultivation of beets.
Heavy soils are not suitable because the roots are likely to be unsymmetrical in shape when
grown on such soils .
The suitable soil pH is 6.0-7.0. It is considered to be a cool weather crop.
Climate
Beetroot grows best under cool conditions and can be grown almost all the year. It has a
tolerance to moderate frosts at all the growth stages. It attains the best colour, texture and quality
under cool weather conditions.
Season
The planting season of beetroot is during August – November.
On hills, planting season is from the end of February to the end of March.
Seed rate
About 6 kg seeds are required for a hectare.
Pre – soaking of seeds for 12hours in water are done for better germination of seeds in the
field.Before sowing, the seeds re treated with Captan and Thiaram @ 2.5-3 g/kg
Preparation of field
The land is ploughed to a fine tilth and ridges and furrows are formed at 30 cm apart.
Spacing
Beets are preferred to be sown on ridges by keeping a row to row distance 30×40cm and plant to
plant distance 15×25cm and 2-3 cm deep in the soilm
Before sowing, the seeds re treated with Captan and Thiaram @ 2.5-3 g/kg
Propagation
Propagation in beetroot is mainly done through seeds.The beetroot takes 2 months to grow from
sowing to maturity.The maturity height of the plant is about 9cm.
Weed control
Weeds drastically reduced the beet yield and therefore, they should be controlled. Hand weeding
is practiced in India whereas, in advance countries mechanical control is usually practiced to
control the weeds between the rows and herbicides are used within the rows.
Clean and shallow hoeing is frequently done to check the weeds and one or two earthing is also
required.
Crop Rotation
Crop rotation must be practiced in order to avoid serious build up soil borne diseases and pests.
Eg- The beet cyst nematode
Beetroots and other host crops like fodder beet, sugar beet, spinach beet , turnips must not be
grown on the same soil more frequently than 1 in 3 years.
Ex- Grass-Beet-Barley-Potatoes
Application of fertilizers
Apply FYM at 20 t/ha thoroughly in the soil at the time of field preparation and 60:160:100 kg of
NPK/ha as basal and 60 kg N/ha after 30 days. Boron is added to the soil to prevent the
occurrence of heart rot.
Fertigation:
Fertigation requirement: 120:160:100kg / ha
Irrigation
Irrigate the field immediately after sowing and afterwards irrigate at an interval 4-5 days in
summer and 10-12 days in winter of when necessary.
Thinning
Thinning is done to soon after the germination to leave single seedling per hill. It is necessary to
have root tubers of uniform shape and size by providing optimum space for uniform
development of the roots.
Earthing up
It is done to support the structure of the plant and to prevent the exposure of roots to sunlight. It
is done when the roots starts growing. Shallow hoeing is necessary to facilitate better root
growth.
Harvesting
Harvesting is can be done around 9 weeks after sowing the seeds when the roots attains diameter
of 3 – 5cm. The roots are harvested before the development of spongy tissue within the roots.
They are usually pulled by hands, the tops are removed and after washing, the roots the graded
according to their size.
Yield
The average yield of beetroot varies from 25 – 30 t/ha in 120 days.
Plant protection
Pests
Leaf miner and flea beetle
Leaf miner and flea beetle can be controlled by spraying Malathion 50 EC 2 ml/lit.
Diseases
Cercospora leaf spot
Cercospora leaf spot and flea beetle can be controlled by spraying Mancozeb at 2 g/lit.
Rhizoctonia root rot
Rhizoctonia root rot can be controlled by spot drenching with Carbendazim at 1 g/lit.