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BeetrootBeetroot (Beta vulgaris) is an im -portant salad vegetable. Althoughthe demand is greatest during thesummer, sowings can be made sothat beet is available from latespring until midwinter.Beet is fairly sensitive to coldtemperatures. Prolonged exposureto temperatures less than lo0 Cwill cause bolting. Early plantingsin July or August should thereforebe made in the warmest part of the garden.

Early Wonder can be sownfrom July in the most northernareas of Victoria. Mid -August isthe earliest that sowings should bemade in the south. I t is slightlyflat in appearance and sometimesdevelops white rings or zoning inthe flesh. To p Market can also besown early. The root has a betterquality and texture than EarlyWonder.

Detroit Dark Red is later andhas a flesh of excellent color and

potash, either broadcast or inbands 50 mm to the side and50 mm deeper than drill row.

Care must be taken not to over-lime as manganese may becomedeficient when soils are alkaline.Beetroot is sensitive to deficienciesof this element. Manganese de -ficiency is seen as a yellowing of

the leaves.Beets are also sensitive to borondeficiency. This causes aninternal breakdown of the root andis particulary severe when the soilis alkaline and the season is dry.Ensure that beetroot receivesample water while it is growing.

Sowing and thinningA fine seed bed is necessary toensure a good germination of seed.The seed is sown 20 to 25 mmdeep in drill rows 300 mm apart.Soaking seed in water for 24 hoursbefore sowing will hasten germi -nation.

quality. Sowings of Detroit Dark Red can be made in southern Vic -toria from September, throughFebruary, and from October,through March, in the north.

Derwent Globe is a deep roundbeet; also with flesh of excellentquality. Maturity is similar toDetroit Dark Red. Green TopBunching is also a later maturingvariety. Its upright tops are idealfor bunching and it is a popularcommercial market variety.

Golden Beet has a yellow rootand tastes the same as the redvarieties.

Soil requirements and fertilisersSoil requirements are essentiallythe same as for carrots (see page80). Beetroot does not thrive onacid soil and liming may be necces-ary. Root crops in generalrespond to applications of potash.

Beetroot needs to grow withoutcheck to produce good qualityroots. Apply 60 to 120 g persquare metre of NPK 5 : 8 : 4complete fertiliser or a 5 : 1mixture of blood and bone and

The soil surface should be keptmoist until the seed has genni-nated. The beetroot seed isreally a seed capsule containing anaverage of three seeds, and seed -lings tend to grow in closely knitbunches. The vigor of the wholestand will suffer unless the seed -lings are thinned. Thinning should

begin when seedlings are 50 m mhigh; first to a spacing of 25 mmbetween seedlings then to 75 mm.

Beetroot will transplant satis -factorily, so that thinnings can beused to fill any gaps in the row.

CultivationWeeds should be controlled, butas many of the roots of beetrootplants are near the surface, culti -vation should be shallow. Weedsin beetroot crops can be controlledby spraying with salt solution(1 kg per 5 litres of water). Saltmust be applied with care, as onpoorly drained soils salt accumu-

The beetroot plants on the right ore aff ec ted with nematodes.

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ion can cause damage to vege -ble crops which follow.

st and disease controleetroot is a hardy crop and isacked by few diseases and pests.

ust can be a problem in someasons, but healthy plants appear

be able to outgrow this dis -

der. Leaf miner, which burrowsthe leaves, can be controlled by

raying with maldison.Beetroot can be harvested ason as the roots are 30 to 40 mmdiameter and from then over a

riod of ten weeks.

BroccoliGreen Sprouting Broccoli (Bras-sica oleracea, variety italica) ismuch easier to grow than itsclose relative the cauliflower. Theopen green flower buds are notas tight as the cauliflower curd andthe plant is less susceptible todifferences in growing conditions.

Broccoli can be successfullygrown in all parts d Victoria.Crops in northern districts shouldbe planted to mature during thecooler months. After the largercentral head has been picked, thenumerous secondary heads can beharvested over several weeks.

Soil requirements and fertilisers

Soil preparation and fertiliserrequirements are essentially thesame as those outlined for cabbageon page 77. Broccoli must begrown rapidily and it will respondto heavy applications of animalmanure supplemented with 70 to150 g of NPK 5:8:4 completefertiliser to the square metre.

If animal manures are notavailable, use 150 g of complete

the secondary heads on the re -maining plants.

Side - dressings and watering areessential to maintain good growth.Particular attention must be givento the watering of direct seededcrops in the early stages of growth.Maintain a regular pest and

disease control program as out -lined for cabbage.

fertiliser. Side - dressings of 2: 1sulphate of ammonia or nitrate of soda plus muriate of potash shouldbe ,applied two or three timesduring the growing season at 50 gper square metre.

Sowing and plantingPlants are raised in seed beds inthe same way as cabbage (page77) and then transpl'anted intothe garden, or, later in the season,they can be seeded direct intothe garden bed.

Early sowings made in seedbeds in October and Novembercan be transplanted in Decemberand January. Later sowings, upuntil April can be made in theseed bed or direct. In the north-em districts, sowings can be madein September and October; thenagain from February throughApril.

Seedlings are transplanted inrows 750 mm apart and 500 m mbetween the plants. Direct seededcrops are firstly thinned to250 mm between plants in rows750 mm apart. This enables thecentral heads of all plants to beharvested. A later thinningleaving one plant in three, willallow adequate development of

HawestingThe central heads will be readyto harvest about 12 weeks aftersowing; after which the side shootscan be picked.

Wait until the buds which formthe head have fully developed butdo not allow the buds to open or

flower. Once heads begin toflower. the side shoots c;ase tooccoli can be successfully grown in al l parts of Victoria unlike its close develop. Cut the heads with 100ative the cauliflower because it is less susceptible t o differences in growingnditions. to 125 mm of stem attached.