beets

I'm in zone 5...It's been hot/cold and wet in that order. My beets are wimps!!! They do not seem to be growing well at all. Some of the tops are showing above the soil. None are eatable size......help...I love beets!!! AnnFran

the hot and wet part of that cycle is probably being the most brutal, on the hot days, if you can, i would give them part shade--its what im having to do, and ive had to give some of my planting pots a hydrogen peroxide spray to ward off damping off because of being too moist.

when were they planted by the way?

AnnFran,
There's a relatively simply fix to help out your beets. It's called a "hoop".

Are your beets planted in raised beds? If so, no worries, and I think you can bring in a lovely harvest of beets -- I love them, too!

So, here's what you can do:

Instructions for Building a PVC Hoop House

Go to the home improvement stores (HD or Lowes) and purchase a length of PVC pipe. Note that they come in Schedule 40 Inside diameter (the inside walls are thicker), or Outside diameter (the inside walls are thinner). Get the thicker walled PVC for your "ribs,", no matter which diameter you decide purchase. Look at them side x side so you'll see the difference.

Determine how tall you want the hoop over your plants, e.g., over lettuce vs. over tomato plants. Generally, I'm covering broccolis, cauliflowers, and cabbages that are growing in 4'x8' raised beds, so I buy the 10' lengths and bend them over the beds. My height ends up being somewhere around 4' to 4-1/2'. [You can use a PVC pipe cutter to trim down the 10' lengths to maybe 7' if you don't have tall plants among the beets. Otherwise, go with the 10' lengths.]

Purchase 1/2" or 3/4" diameter Schedule 40 for your ribs. If you have a lot of wind go with the 3/4". Now, determine how many "ribs" you'll need. Calculate the length of your area to be covered, noting that you'll place a "rib" every 12". This will give your total number of ribs.

Once you've got the diameter and number necessary, you need to purchase 1-2 more PVC pipes that are just about 1/2" larger diameter than your ribs. These will become your ground "anchors". You will cut these larger pipes into 12" pieces, and pound them into the ground every 12" down the two parallel lengths of your bed/area. Use a hammer, or rubber mallot to pound them in flush (no trip hazards!). Get a small board to hold over the top of the anchor, and pound the board (avoid pounding your hand and/or splitting the pipe...)

When you bend your ribs over, you will slip one side into an "anchor", bend it over, and fit it into the "anchor" on the other side. Voila'! You are making a hoop house!

Finally, purchase some 4-6 mil clear contractor's plastic to cover your hoop. This season, I purchased perforated plastic sheeting (from Territorial Seed Company), and it worked like a charm in the late winter months to protect the plants from the freezing cold (sustained temps below 30°, as well as kept the cabbage and other moths from lighting on the plants and laying eggs -- I had very, very few bug holes in my plants this springtime).

The holes allow air to flow right on through, and wind gusts won't lift the hoop off the ground. Also, water and light are easily available to the plants through the perforations.

You don't absolutely have to have the perforations. If you can get the sheeting at HD or Lowe's, just make sure to vent the two ends (at least) so heat won't build up inside. You can fry your plants underneath!

So. That's it!

Once you get all your parts assembled, you can install your hoop in about 10-15 minutes! The 10' lengths at the box stores run about $1.47 to $1.57 per pipe. Also, if you ever need to dismantle the hoop, you just remove the ribs. You can leave the anchors sunk into the ground for next season. If you need to remove the anchors, wet the ground around them first and use a pair of pliers to pull them up. They come up pretty easily, with a plug of mud in the bottom. No problem!

P.S. The hoop can be used almost year-round. You can use different coverings for different times of the year. Lightweight blankets, Remay and row covers, netting, breezy gauze, etc. Use either alligator/bulldog clips, or, if you have any excess PVC larger than your rib, cut it into little sections and split it down one side. Slip it over the rib to catch the fabric.

Hope this helps!

Linda

P.S. Last season I "accidentally" made a mini-Greenhouse for seedling trays. I used them to harden off my seedlings, and keep the flying stuff off of them.

Hugs!

AnnFran,
I almost forgot, until I reviewed the pics I posted. You can see in my early hoop that the ribs aren't standing evenly tall. They started sinking into the anchors...I learned later how to make them even.

I stopped pounding the anchors into the ground, and started screwing them to the outsides of my raised beds, still evenly spaced every 12" down the sides. I marked 6" down from the top of each anchor. Then I aligned each one flush with the top of the sides, and screwed it in at the 6" mark. That way, when I bent the ribs over, each rib only went down as far as the screw, and didn't sink further. All were the same height.

Voila!

Here's the mini-Greenhouse I made by bending PVC pipe over a homemade jig.

Here are the video instructions from ldsprepper's channel on YouTube

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X7uis53iRmk&list=PLCxrB0SIHkCWhzg93bgaFyydxzdoAmvzZ&index=13

Basically, I used his greenhouse frame instructions and built a base to set them in. The whole frame sits over the seedlings.

You can see the anchors screwed into the sides of my raised beds... The bed in the middle in Pic #3 is beets!


This message was edited Aug 5, 2014 3:29 PM

AnnFran? Are you still with us?

Checking on your beets progress.