Beetroot Seed Boltardy

As the name suggests, bolt-resistant. The deep red flesh has a smooth skin, very few rings, and an intense sweet flavour.

This is an excellent variety (and a time proven firm favourite with amateur a professional alike) for early sowings. Young leaves can be eaten as baby leaves. The small beets can be used as salad beetroot and then of course the mature beets can be used in salads or cooked as a vegetable.

Eat raw grated, boiled - with or without vinegar, or roasted as beetroot chips - Molly and Milly Shirley's favourite. And if that's not enough you can use the mature leaves just like Spinach or Chard.

For Early Beetroot

• Sow February to April, preferably in module trays; this is a cluster seed so multiple seedlings will emerge.
• Plant out after hardening off 4" (10 cm) apart in rows 12" (30 cm) apart.
• Thin out to one plant per station or remove one beetroot at a time carefully when about the size of a table tennis ball leaving one to grow to full size.
• Harvest approximately May-July.

For Main Crops

• Sow mid-April to July two seeds 4" apart in rows 12" (30 cm) apart. Sow in 1" (2.5 cm) deep drills.
• When the seedlings are 1" (2.5 cm) high thin out to one plant per station or remove one beetroot at a time carefully when about the size of a table tennis ball leaving the other to grow to full size.
• Harvest approximately September-October.

Top Tips

• Water regularly in hot dry weather to keep roots sweet and stop them going 'woody'.
• Roots will store all winter without loss of flavour if plunged in coarse sand or well-composted bark.