Beetroot

Beetroot is so simple to grow in your garden, is highly nutritious, and homegrown beetroot, like most veggies,  tastes 100 times better than the stuff from the can that they put on your “hamburger”. At least my Australian readers will understand beetroot on Hamburgers, those from other countries will probably not get it but trust me its pretty good, you might want to try it yourself, although I do recommend a good homemade beetroot relish for your burger not the stuff from the can!

Planting

You can grow them spring to autumn in cool and temperate areas, all year in subtropics, and autumn to spring in the tropics

The great thing about planting beetroots is they are not fussy about where they grow. You can plant them in full sun to part shade and they will even be happy in dappled light under a tree. You can even grow them in tubs or containers!

When planting beetroots your soil needs to be rich and well-drained, make sure its packed full of organic matter like compost and manures. Most important for a good, healthy beetroot plant is drainage, make sure you don’t have heavy, clay type soil, if so you may need to put some work into the soil to improve its structure, this can be done with compost or maybe use raised garden beds or think about growing in pots!

Maintenance

Beetroots will grow best if planted from seed rather than seedlings. The seed itself is a weird looking “cluster” of a few true seeds in a corky coating. You will need to soak the seeds overnight before planting.

To plant the seeds, make a 2cm deep trench and place seeds about 2cm apart. Cover the seeds lightly with seed raising mix and make sure you keep them damp but not soaking wet. It will take about two weeks for your baby beetroots to appear. At this stage you will want to thin them out a bit so they have room to grow, to do this either remove and throw the ones that don’t look as happy and healthy in the compost or if you have very healthy looking plants,  just replant them so they are spaced around 6 – 8cm between each plant.

The quicker a beetroot grows the sweeter and tastier it will become so make sure you give it lots of fertiliser in the growing stage, I prefer to use a liquid seaweed once a fortnight.

As with all root vegies, fertilisers high in nitrogen are unnecessary and totally counter-productive. Nitrogen puts on top leaf growth but does nothing for the roots beneath.

Special tip: Boron is an important nutrient for growing beetroot and often lacking in Australian soils, particularly in alkaline soils. Boron is available in packets at nurseries. Mix no more than ? teaspoon in a 9-litre watering can and pour it over seeds or seedlings when planting. This mix will cover an area of one square metre and one dose is enough for each crop.

Companion planting

Beetroots are pretty happy to get along with most plants in the garden but they particularly like, beans, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, lettuce, onions, peas, potatoes, radish and silver beet.

Harvesting

The trick to the best tasting beetroot is harvest young! Beetroots are at their sweetest when 30-50mm wide. These are often referred to as 'baby beats". It takes around 2-3 months to get them to this size. You can still pick them until they reach up to tennis ball size but anything bigger than this and although they look great, they really do start to get tough and lose flavour.

Don’t forget the leaves, they make an amazing addition to salads and stir frys. Leaves can be harvested from around 6 weeks on. Start with outer leaves first and always leave 5-6 on the plant so it continues to grow

Benefits of Beetroots

As I mentioned at the start Beetroot has an exceptionally high nutritional value; especially the leaves, which are rich in calcium, iron and vitamins A and C. Beetroots are an excellent source of folic acid and a very good source of fibre, manganese and potassium. The leaves should never be ignored, they are fantastic in salads or can be cooked and enjoyed in the same way as spinach.

Being rich in fibre beetroots tend to have a favourable effect on bowel function which may assist in preventing constipation. Don’t forget they also may change the colour of your poo which has no side effects and will go away within a day or two, depending on how much you have consumed! Interestingly, Beetroot fibre has been shown to increase the number of white blood cells, which are responsible for immune function and are involved in protecting the body against both infectious disease and foreign invaders. Red beetroots have been ranked one of the top 10 most potent antioxidant vegetables and are also one of the richest sources of glutamine, an amino acid, essential to the health and maintenance of the intestinal tract.

Heart health and blood pressure: Research has suggested drinking beetroot juice can have a positive effect on lowering blood pressure and keeping your heart healthy. A study was published in Hypertension in 2008, found that blood pressure was significantly lowered after a person drank 500mls of beetroot juice.

Dementia: In research conducted by Wake Forest University, it was shown drinking beetroot juice could improve oxygenation to the brain, slowing the progression of dementia in older adults.

Inflammation: Beetroots contain a nutrient called Choline which is a very important and versatile nutrient that assists with sleep, muscle movement, learning, and memory. Choline also helps to maintain the structure of cellular membranes, aids in the transmission of nerve impulses, assists in the absorption of fat and reduces chronic inflammation.

Exercise and athletic performance: Drinking beetroot juice has been shown to improve muscle oxygenation during exercise and can enhance exercise tolerance during long-term endurance exercise.

Beetroot Relish – Perfect for Hamburgers

Ingredients

• 750 g beetroot
• 2 brown onion
• 2 green apples (cored)
• 2 cup balsamic vinegar
• 1 cup orange juice
• ? cup water
• ? cup sugar (this is to taste and may be reduced)
• 1 pinch sea salt *to taste
• 1 pinch ground pepper *to taste

Directions

• Peel and process beetroot, apple and onion in a food processor.
• Add all ingredients to a large deep frying pan or large saucepan.
• Place over medium heat, cover and bring to the boil.
• Cook for 30 minutes or until the beetroot is soft and the liquid has reduced and thickened slightly.
• Pour into sterilised jars, seal and let cool.

Beetroot Salad

Ingredients

·         1 bunch baby or small beetroots

·         4 whole garlic cloves, peeled

·         2 tablespoons olive oil – for roasting beetroots

·         salt to taste (about half teaspoon)

·         Big bunch of beetroot leaves

·         2 good handfuls of rocket

·         100g feta, cut into small cubes

·         1/2 cup walnuts

·         2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

·         60mls olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees. Scrub the beetroot clean and cut into quarters or eighths (depending on how big they are.)

Put them in a small baking dish with the 2 tablespoons of oil, garlic and salt and cook till done - about 45 mins. You know they are done when a fork will easily pierce them.

Wash the rocket and beetroot leaves and put in a bowl, mix a pinch of salt, 60mls olive oil and balsamic vinegar, in a small bowl with a whisk or use a small food processor combine well.

When the beetroots are done, let them cool a little then add them and all the contents of the baking dish to the leaves. I suggest you Toast the walnuts in a dry frypan for a few minutes, it makes them smell and taste fantastic. Add them to the salad, pour over the dressing and mix it all so everything is coated with dressing.  Crumble the fetta over the top and its good to serve while the beetroot is still a little warm.