BEETROOT MONETA

(Each seed produces 1 plant, so thinning is not necessary). Simply space as you sow. Good quality internally as well as a superb external appearance. Main crop.

Beetroot are easy to grow and ideal for beginners, beetroot is good for more than pickling! Try roasting baby beetroot and serving with a creamy onion sauce, grating it raw beetroot into salads or mixing cooked chopped beetroot with a little olive oil, salt and garlic for a tasty reminder of Greek holidays. Beetroot is best sown little and often, and harvested when young sweet and tender ideally about the size of a golf ball. You can use the very young leaves in mixed salads too.

Beetroot prefer to be grown in moist, fertile soil in a sunny spot, but will also thrive in raised beds or pots.

Beetroot will grow in any well-drained garden soil but require fertile conditions. Early sowings benefit from protection with horticultural fleece or cloches.

Seed can be sown directly into the soil from April to July. Germination normally takes 7 to 14 days.

Make a 2cm deep trench with the corner of a rake (or a cane will do) and drop in two seeds every 10cm or 4in. Cover, water well and label. Once the seedlings are about an inch tall remove the weakest of each pair to leave one beetroot seedling every 10cm. When the seedlings emerge they may need protection from birds which can clear a crop in days given the opportunity.

Water every 10-14 days in dry spells.