Beets are one of the most underappreciated root vegetables around the world.
Colorful, acidic, and nutrient-dense, beets make a wonderful addition to salads, soups, and even desserts.
Whether eaten raw or cooked, these scrumptious veggies contain healing compounds that prevent disease and keep your body in tip-top shape.
High in iron and iodine, the root can even be used to treat anemia and thyroid-related disorders. Plus, it’s high in vitamin C, folate, and potassium.
Health Benefits Of Beets
Here are just a few of the great properties of the red vegetable:
- Beets contain polyphenols and betalains, which have to ability to reverse and prevent oxidative damage. Polyphenols also prevent cardiovascular disease.
- They contain various vitamins, including B-complex vitamins, which strengthen capillary walls and prevent cognitive decline.
- Beets contain a slew of minerals , including potassium and folate, which promote heart health. Plus, they contain magnesium, which benefits bone health; iron and phosphorus, which produce energy; copper, which destroys free radicals; iodine, which is essential to produce thyroid hormones; and more.
- They contain cobalt, which helps your intestinal bacteria form vitamin B12. This vitamin is essential, alongside folic acid, for the formation of new red blood cells.
- Beets contain folic acid, which revitalizes your body by helping it creating new cells.
- Betalin and other compounds in beets help escort toxins out of your system.
- Beets contain betacyanins and other antioxidants that prevent the growth of cancer cells.
- Their high fiber content improves digestion and gut flora.
- Beets help prevent dementia due to high concentration of nitrates, which are transformed by the body into nitrites. Nitrates improve blood flow to improve the amount of nutrients and oxygen that make their way all the way to your brain.
- They contain more pectin than carrots or apples. Pectin absorbs heavy metals from your body while also removing harmful bacteria from your digestive tract.
And if all the benefits mentioned above weren’t enough, these lovely red veggies have the ability to lower cholesterol, reduce blood pressure, reverse cognitive decline, improve liver function, and boost your metabolism.
How to grow Beets
1. Plant beets at the right time
Beets grow well in almost any climate. In cooler areas, plant beets about one month before the last spring frost when soil temperatures reach at least 50°F. Plant a late round of beets towards the end of summer from June to September. Beets tolerate a little frost and near-freezing temperatures.
2. Choose the best location to plant beets
Although beets prefer growing in cooler temperatures, they still need at least 6 hours of sun to thrive. Beets grow best in well-draining rich, loose soil. Choose smaller, rounded varieties of beets if your soil is heavy or shallow.
3. How to grow beets? Plant beets correctly
Each beet “seed” actually contains up to 6 seeds.
- Pre-soak seeds to increase germination rates, and plant each seed 1 inch deep and 2-4 inches apart.
- Thin when beet seedlings are 2-3 inches tall.
- Thin carefully and transplant extra seedlings or use as greens in salad.
- Plant seeds every few weeks for a continual harvest.
- If using Square Foot Gardening, plant 9 to 16 per square depending on the variety.
4. Provide good care for growing beets
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- Beets do not like hot weather or dry conditions; plant at the correct time for your climate.
- If temperatures are warm, provide a deep layer of mulch to cool the soil.
- Regular water keeps beets tender and prevents discoloration.
- If flea beetles or leaf miners are an issue, use row covers for prevention.
- Pick off damaged leaves as the plant grows.
- Beets grown in rich soil do not need additional fertilizer during the growing season. Excess nitrogen results in large greens but smaller root development.
Enjoy beets’ unique earthy flavor roasted in the oven, steamed, juiced, fried, sautéed, or sliced fresh in salads. Preserve beets by canning, pickling, or fermenting.