Early Wonder Beet
Also known as: Beta vulgaris
What's special about Early Wonder Beet
Early heirloom beet with round, deep-red roots and tasty greens. Good for canning or fresh eating.
Growing this variety
Early Wonder Beet follows the same growing basics as Beet. Variety-specific maturity above; everything else below applies to the whole Beet family.
Germination
Spacing & depth
How to plant
Soak seed 24 hrs before sowing. Each 'seed' is a cluster of 2–4 embryos — always thin to one strongest sprout.
Grower's tip
Greens are edible and delicious — harvest a few outer leaves without pulling the root.
Soil preferences
Deep, loose, stone-free sandy loam — rocks and clumps fork roots.
6.0–7.0
Avoid fresh manure or heavy nitrogen (causes hairy or forked roots). A light compost and rock phosphate work well.
Watering
Steady moisture — 1 in per week. Uneven watering causes cracking.
Deep soaking; avoid shallow daily watering that keeps roots near the surface.
Overwatered: cracked or rotted roots, foliage disease. Underwatered: woody, hot-flavored, or bitter roots.
Prefers top-watering — Top-water deeply at the soil surface so the whole root zone stays evenly damp — bottom-watering isn't practical in the ground.
Temperature tolerance
60–75°F (15–24°C)
45–65°F (7–18°C)
Carrots, parsnips, beets sweeten after frost. Storage roots can often overwinter in the ground under heavy mulch.
Container growing
Possible with the right cultivar
12+ in deep for full-size carrots and parsnips; 8 in deep is fine for radish and short carrots
Pick short or round cultivars (Parisian carrots, Chioggia beets) for shallow containers.
Succession planting
Radish every 2 weeks. Carrots and beets every 3–4 weeks spring through late summer.
Detailed harvesting
Loosen soil with a fork before pulling to prevent snapped tops. Twist off greens 1 in above the crown for storage; leave 1 in of stem on beets to prevent bleeding.
Post-harvest storage & preservation
Trim tops; store unwashed in damp sand or perforated bags in the fridge or root cellar at 32–40°F. Most root crops keep 3–6 months.
Culinary, medicinal & other uses
Fresh, roasted, fermented (kraut, kimchi), pickled. Tops of beets, radishes, and turnips are edible greens.
Medicinal or traditional uses are shared for interest only — this is not medical advice. Consult a qualified professional before using any plant medicinally.
Seed saving
Biennial and insect-pollinated. Root crops cross widely (carrots cross with Queen Anne's Lace).
1/2 mile in the open or use cage with introduced pollinators.
Overwinter the best roots; replant in spring; collect the dry umbels/seed stalks in year 2.
Your zone's planting calendar
Pick your USDA hardiness zone and we'll estimate the key dates for beet in your area. These are regional averages — always check your own last-frost forecast before sowing.
My Early Wonder Beet Beet notes
Early Wonder Beet Beet seeds on hand
Track packets and loose seeds you already have. Private to your account.
Par level — leave at 0 for no alert. Anything below par shows on Seed Starting and your shopping list.
From your kitchen — grow beet from what you already have
Also biennial — a stored beet replanted in spring will bolt and set seed year 2.
- 1Plant a whole beet root in spring, top just below soil surface.
- 2It sends up a 3–5 ft flower stalk that sets small hard clusters ('seedballs' — each is actually a cluster of 2–4 seeds).
- 3Cut stalks when seedballs are tan-brown; strip into a bag and rub off.
- 4Store dry. Sow in cool spring soil.
Storage: 4–5 years dry.
Order more seeds
Running low? Reorder from one of these seed stores.
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Other Beet varieties
Detroit Dark Red
60 daysThe classic deep-red round beet — smooth skin, sweet flesh, excellent for canning and roasting.
Chioggia
55 daysItalian heirloom with concentric pink-and-white bull's-eye rings when sliced. Mild, sweet.
Golden
55 daysBright yellow flesh — won't bleed onto other foods. Sweeter and milder than red. Lower germination — sow thickly.
Bull's Blood
50 days (35 days for greens)Deep burgundy foliage as ornamental as it is edible. Roots are red-purple heirlooms — grown for baby greens as much as beets.
Cylindra
60 daysLong carrot-shaped red beet — uniform slices, ideal for pickling. Great in heavy soils.