Beta Vulgaris (Common Beet) Class:Magnoliopsida Order
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Beta vulgaris (Common Beet) Class:Magnoliopsida Order: Caryophyllales Family: Amaranthaceae Genus: Beta Species: Beta vulgaris Beet seeds Common Varieties: Bull’s Blood, Golden, Chioggia, Detroit Dark Red How to Save Seed Beets are a biennial crop, meaning they require two years to complete their full growing cycle. However, most growers never see this second stage of life because beets are harvested for food during the first year. The second year heralds seed production. To save the seeds from beta vulgaris, the beets themselves must be overwintered. This process, unique to perennial and biennial crops, requires that the taproot of the beta vulgaris (the edible part of the beet) be stored in a protected place during the winter months. A Seed Saving Guide asserts that the optimal temperature range for winter storage is between 35-38F at 90-95% humidity. The roots may be stored in sawdust or wood shavings to minimize rot. This allows the plant to enter a period of dormancy—during this time, the plant’s energy will be diverted to the next year’s seed production. In Spring, plant the overwintered beets outside in a well-watered trench. Because beets are wind-pollinated, they should be planted in a block formation rather than a straight row to ensure proper pollination. The Seed Saver’s Exchange Seed Saving Guide specifies that the isolation distance (the distance between different varieties of beets) must be over 800 feet. Adhering to this distance is critical—without it, there is potential for varieties to cross-pollinate, meaning the genetic integrity of the beet variety will be compromised. Plants that cross-pollinate, or inbreed, are weaker, predisposed to mutations and susceptibility to disease, pests, blight, and poor germination. If only planting for food production, isolation distance is not critical. In the YouTube video “Beet Seed- Grow your own – Part 2,” Hank, a seed saver, observes that his overwintered beets began producing seeds in ten weeks. At twelve weeks, he ties them up on stakes to ensure they dry properly. The Organic Seed Alliance says that beet seeds are mature and ready to harvest when 60 to 80% of the seed balls on the flowering stalk have turned a tannish-brown shade. An alternate but more complicated method of testing the maturity of the seeds is to check the endosperm (the part of the seed which provides nutrition to the plant embryo) of the seed. To do this, a seed saver must crack open a seed ball and inspect the endosperm. When it becomes starchy and firm, the seeds are mature enough to harvest. Ideally, 70-75% of the seeds on any given plant must be at this stage to consider harvest. The entire process, from overwintering to harvesting seed, usually takes over two years. Under the right storage conditions (very dry and with no fluctuations in humidity or temperature), beet seeds will remain optimal for germination for up to 3-5 years (seedalliance.org). Why save biennial seeds? Why put it in all of that work? “Seeds saved in the same place where they will be grown tend to be stronger and more robust than seeds from elsewhere. That’s especially true for biennials, which have two growing seasons to acclimate to their local environment, enabling the seed saver to then select seeds from the plants that fared best” (“Saving Seeds from Biennial Crops”). In other words, saving your own seeds is an act of resilience. Seed savers are able to make a conscious choice between which plants will fare the best, which plants will be able to survive adverse climate conditions, resist pest damage, and produce an abundant and flavorful crop. The process of saving biennial seeds is especially labor intensive, and beets are particularly finicky about when their seeds are mature. Saving their seeds requires the hope that, in time, the process will yield a future. Saving the seeds of the beet asks patience, faith in growth, and resilience. .