Beta vulgaris “Chioggia”
Chioggia beet, Chioggia beetroot, candy-stripe beet: cut it in half and you’ll understand its nickname — its flesh forms concentric pink and white rings, like a lollipop. This 19th-century Italian variety, originating in the Venice Lagoon, is also one of the sweetest.
Characteristics:
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Striped flesh: concentric pink and white rings, spectacular when thinly sliced.
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Mild, sweet flavor: less earthy than red beetroot, excellent raw.
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Ancient Italian variety, open-pollinated.
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Suitable for growing in pots: it does very well in containers on a balcony or terrace.
Sowing advice:
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Exposure: sunny.
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Soil: cool, light, loose and deep, enriched with well-rotted compost. Avoid stony soils, which deform the roots, and never add fresh manure.
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Method: sow from March to June to stagger harvests, 2 cm deep in rows spaced 30 cm apart. Soak the seeds for one hour in lukewarm water to encourage germination. Each “seed” is a cluster containing 3 to 6 fused seeds — hence the clustered emergence. See how to sow seeds.
Care advice:
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Thinning is essential to 10 cm apart as soon as 3 or 4 leaves appear. The good news: beetroot is the only root vegetable that can be transplanted without difficulty — the removed seedlings are not wasted.
- Water regularly, especially during dry periods: fluctuations in moisture can cause the roots to split.
Harvesting advice:
- Harvest young, when 5 to 8 cm in diameter: this is when the rings are most contrasting and the flesh most tender. If it grows too large, it becomes paler and fibrous.
- Leave 3 cm of stem when cutting the leaves, which can be cooked like Swiss chard.
Beneficial companion plants:
Benefits for biodiversity:
- Its abundant foliage covers the soil, protects it from drying out and provides shelter for ground beetles and other beneficial insects.
- Growing colorful heirloom varieties like this one directly contributes to preserving cultivated diversity.
Uses:
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Best enjoyed raw: its striped color fades during cooking, so serve it as carpaccio or grated in a salad to showcase the pattern. If you cook it, baking is preferable to boiling, and a splash of vinegar should be added.
Harvesting your own seeds:
As a biennial, it produces seed in its second year: keep a few roots protected from frost and replant them in spring. Harvest the dry flower stalks. Be careful, as it cross-pollinates with Swiss chard and other beets: isolate your seed plant. See how to save your seeds.
Commitment to Quality: at SemiSauvage - Permaculture, we grow and select our seeds with respect for all living things as our guiding principle. Based near the Auvergne Volcanoes, we choose open-pollinated, non-hybrid varieties, test them for germination rate, and carefully sort and package them without any chemical treatment. Our belief: to give gardeners back the ability to resow, year after year, seeds that truly belong to them.
The beetroot best enjoyed raw, for the pleasure of the eyes.
