Vegetable · Amaranthaceae
When to plant beetroot
Each seed is a cluster of several, so thinning is not optional.
Sow direct
3 weeks before
Counted from your last spring frost.
Days to maturity
50-70
From sowing to a first picking.
Frost tolerance
Half hardy
How much cold the plant itself will take.
Those weeks become real dates once you name a place.
Timing, in frost-relative terms
Seed packets rarely give calendar dates, because a date that suits one latitude is wrong at another. They give offsets from the last spring frost instead, and those offsets are what make beetroot plantable anywhere.
- Sow direct 3 weeks before the last frost.
- Expect 50–70 days to maturity, counted from sowing.
- Sow again every 21 days for a continuous supply.
- Can also be sown in late summer for an autumn crop.
Getting the timing right
Sow from three weeks before last frost, then every three weeks until ten weeks before first frost. Small roots taste better than large ones.
Frost tolerance
Seedlings take a light frost. Very early sowings into cold soil can trigger bolting later, so do not rush the first one.
Classified as half-hardy, with damage expected below -5°C (23°F)23°F (-5°C).