List of the best beet varieties for 2024 and how to choose, pros and cons

It’s hard to imagine a Russian table without beets. Therefore, most gardeners certainly have a place on their plot for this tasty and healthy vegetable. The root vegetable improves digestion, is useful for vitamin deficiency, is a dietary product and is recommended by nutritionists for those who want to lose extra pounds. A review of the best beet varieties for 2024 will help you make the right choice and help you grow and maintain a good harvest.

The best beet varieties for open ground for 2024

There are table, sugar and fodder varieties of this root vegetable. Fodder beets are intended for animals and are not used in cooking. Sugar is used to produce sugar. Table species have a rich burgundy hue, a pleasant sweet taste, and vegetables are smaller in size than forage ones. They are used for preparing various dishes and juices. The vegetable can also be consumed raw.

When choosing a beet variety for planting, you should consider:

• climate in the region;
• root vegetable taste;
• productivity;
• resistance to diseases and pests.

The ability to preserve the harvest for a long time is also a very important selection criterion. Typically, preference is given to regionalized varieties of root vegetables.

Early varieties

This is considered a vegetable that fully ripens in 70-90 days. These varieties are suitable for regions with short summers, for example, the Urals and Siberia.

Red ball

Round root vegetables with dark pulp, sweet taste, without ringing in the core. The weight of the vegetable is 200-400 grams.

Pros:

• safety;
• not subject to flowering and stemming;
• withstands spring cold snaps.

The disadvantages of the Red Ball include average resistance to disease and lack of moisture.

Productivity is 5-6 kilograms per square meter of area.

Pablo F1

The hybrid comes from Holland. The advantage of this variety is:

• taste;
• uniform color of the core;
• unpretentiousness to the composition of the soil.

Among the disadvantages: if harvesting is delayed, the vegetable loses its taste.

Not afraid of drought and cold, unpretentious to the composition of the soil. Root vegetables weighing 100-200 grams are perfectly stored without changing their taste. They are resistant to bacterial and fungal infections. Due to its high yield, it is suitable for industrial cultivation.

Bordeaux 237

Round, slightly flattened root vegetables, reaching 250-500 grams. Advantages of the vegetable:

• ease of care;
• resistance to heat and cold;
• color preservation during cooking.

The disadvantages include:

• the need to dive;
• A large area is allocated for the variety so that the beets are large.

It does not lose its rich hue when cooked, the cut does not have pronounced rings. Excellent preservation of fruits. Resistant to infections.

Mid-season beets

The ripening period is 100-120 days after germination. They are suitable for the Moscow region, the middle zone, and the Volga region.

Cylinder

A variety loved by gardeners for its unpretentiousness, high yield and excellent taste. Root crops of elongated cylindrical shape. Pros of Cylinders:

• withstands drought;
• long-term preservation;
• has juicy pulp without rings.

One of the disadvantages is sensitivity to low temperatures.

The weight of root vegetables is from 240 to 600 grams. It is quickly prepared without losing its richness during heat treatment.

Detroit

Bred by Italian breeders. There are 2 varieties registered in the State Register of the Russian Federation: Detroit and Detroit ruby ​​3. They differ in the average weight of root crops. The first one has 100-200 grams, the second one has 220-400 grams. The vegetables are round, with a dark red core. The advantages of Detroit are:

• taste;
• excellent shelf life and transportability of root crops;
• resistant to lack of moisture, diseases and short-term drops in temperature.

Gardeners note that Detroit has no shortcomings. The pulp is juicy, sweet, without whitish ringing and fibrousness.

Mulatto

Domestic selection. The fruits are round, weighing 150-350 grams. Juicy, with dark burgundy flesh, no ringing on the cut. Pros:

• taste;
• safety;
• not subject to coloration;
• unpretentious to the composition of the soil.

Minuses:

• requires good illumination of beds.

Late varieties

These are varieties with a ripening period of 120-135 days. Most often grown in southern regions with long summers.

Citadel

Late hybrid. Representative of the Czech selection, with a small amount of tops. Root vegetables with a pleasant taste, weighing from 180 to 350 grams. Advantages:

• taste;
• long shelf life;
• ease of cultivation and care.

Flaws:

• the need for picking;
• demands on watering and lighting.

The vegetable is cylindrical in shape, with dark burgundy pulp, without ringing.

Varvara

Late single-seeded (does not require thinning) variety. Aligned root vegetables are round in shape, vegetable weight is 200-300 grams. No rings on the cut. Vegetables are dark burgundy in color. Advantages of the variety:

• taste;
• marketable condition;
• long-term preservation.

Cons: when planted in the shade, the root crops become smaller. Suitable for all types of processing.

Matron

Late ripening beets. Root vegetables are dark red in color and round in shape. Sugar content is about 7%. Advantages of root vegetables:

• taste;
• vegetable marketability;
• keeping quality.

Its disadvantages:

• mandatory thinning;
• requirement for watering.

Harmonious ripening of the crop, leveled root crops weighing 260-500 grams are suitable for long-term storage. Does not lose consumer properties.

Choosing beets for greenhouse cultivation

The vegetable is suitable for growing indoors. In a greenhouse, seeds can be sown from the second decade of December, then already in early spring you can enjoy young root vegetables. Beet tops are also popular in cooking. Salads and light soups are prepared from it. You can harvest beets in a greenhouse when the vegetables reach 3 centimeters in diameter. By periodically thinning the plantings, the gardener allows the remaining root crops to grow to large sizes.

Suitable for indoor ground: Pablo F1, Cylinder, Detroit, Red Ball. For small (dessert) beets, the seeds are planted at a distance of 8 centimeters from each other; if you plan to grow larger root crops, it is increased to 10-12 centimeters.

How to choose a beet variety for a specific region

It’s easy for a novice gardener to get confused by the abundance of proposals. For cold regions, early varieties are selected; in the middle zone, early and mid-season varieties can be planted; in the southern regions, late varieties are also cultivated.

For the middle band

Red Ball, Cylinder, both varieties of Detroit, Mulatto, Bordeaux 237 are perfect. All of these varieties are unpretentious and disease-resistant. They do not suffer from a lack of moisture and are able to survive short-term spring cold snaps.

For Siberia and the Urals

In these regions, early varieties that can ripen in a short warm period are often planted. Popular among gardeners are Red Ball, Bordeaux 237, Cylinder, Red Ice, Cold-resistant 19. The excellent keeping quality of root crops allows them to be preserved until spring without loss of taste and external qualities.

For the Moscow region

The same varieties are popular here as in the middle zone. They have time to fully ripen and are perfectly stored.

Other criteria for selecting varieties

Most people choose beets based on the taste of the product and take into account the keeping quality of the harvested crop. Many people try to choose a variety that does not discolor during cooking.

For storage

If beets are to be stored for a long time, preference should be given to mid-season and late varieties. Early root crops last less and are best consumed for food in the first months after harvest. Mid-season and late beets last for 8-12 months.

Important: root vegetables are not washed after harvesting, the stems are not removed, large clods of earth are removed, and the tops are trimmed, leaving 2-3 centimeters.

Before storing in a cellar or basement, they should be sorted out, dried and stored in a cool, ventilated area. Boxes with vegetables should be raised above the floor by 10-15 centimeters.

The sweetest beets for 2024

The sweetest varieties are: Mulatto, Cylinder, Bordeaux 237. These root vegetables are suitable for making juice, children's and dietary cuisine.

The best varieties of beets

Housewives prefer vegetables without cut rings or whitish veins. This review presents just such varieties.

Feed varieties

This type of vegetable is intended for feeding farm animals. Such root vegetables differ in color, they are less sweet and much larger than their table counterparts. Average weight – from 600 grams to 2.5 kilograms. They can be yellow, red, almost white, or orange. The most productive are: Milana, Record Poli, Eckendofskaya yellow.

Beetroot has been cultivated by humans for many centuries. During this time, a huge number of varieties of this vegetable have appeared. The breeding work does not end; new varieties of root crops appear on the market.Therefore, every gardener can choose an option to suit his taste.