Beets, unlike carrots, are not so picky about watering. In normal summer, this vegetable crop throughout the season is enough to water only 5-7 times. Approximately 3 buckets of water are used per 1 m2. Everything changes when the prolonged heat comes.
Kyiv. Ukraine. Ukraine Gate – June 29, 2021 – Agriculture
Drought in the early stages of development forces the plant to rebuild and instead of root formation to bloom. At a later stage, this leads to a sharp decline in crop quality – the fruits become tasteless, harder and coarser, later worse stored.
The main indicator that indicates a constant lack of moisture in beets is brownish-purple leaves that turn red. It is also smaller.
In hot weather, two important nuances should be considered:
1. Water droplets on the leaves work like small lenses, which can lead to burns.
2. The high temperature under the scorching rays of the sun accelerates the evaporation of moisture from the upper soil layers.
Therefore, the first thing to do – is to immediately mulch the beds with beets plucked grass. No need to look for hay, straw, or sawdust, just go out into the yard and pick the leaves of weeds, preferably not flowering. You can increase the protective layer gradually: first spread the mulch sparsely, then more densely.
Under a layer of grass, even in extreme heat, beets begin to feel confident in a week. The frequency and abundance of the watering can be reduced. During the laying and formation of roots in hot weather, it is enough to perform 2 waterings per week, in normal – 1 water in 7-10 days. Water should be watered more often on sandy and loamy soils, and less frequently, but more abundantly, on heavy clay soils.
It is equally important that under the mulch does not form surface crusts, which harden quickly in the heat and make it difficult for oxygen to reach the roots of plants.
Also, keep in mind that the water in the barrels on hot days becomes hot and cools down gradually. So it is better to water in the morning after a cool night or late in the evening.
Read Also: Mistakes During Watering the Tomatoes
Source: Ukrgate
