Content
Mulatto beets are one of the most popular table varieties. It has long become attractive to gardeners due to its taste, beneficial properties, and productivity. To successfully cultivate root crops, it is necessary to follow the rules of agricultural technology, taking into account the characteristics of the variety.
Origin story
Table beet (Beta vulgaris L.ssp.vulgaris var. conditiva Alef.) Mulatto was obtained in the eighties of the last century by the Soviet breeder Sergei Vasilyevich Maksimov. Work on improving the variety continued until 2001 at the Poisk agricultural company. Two years later, it was included in the register of breeding achievements of the Russian Federation and recommended for cultivation in most regions of the country, from the Volga-Vyatka to the Far East. Very quickly, Mulatto beets became widespread; they began to be cultivated in the CIS countries, the European Union, and the USA.
The popularity of the Mulatka variety is explained by the high quality of root crops and excellent transportability
Description of the beet variety Mulatka
At the stage of technical ripeness, Mulatka beets have rounded roots with smooth skin. Sometimes their heads can acquire a cork-like structure. The pulp is dark burgundy, without cylindrical rings. The average weight of the vegetable is 200-400 g. The axial root is small, purple in color. The oval light green foliage of the Mulatto beet forms an erect rosette up to 40 cm high. The petioles are crimson on the back side. The edges of the leaf plates are wavy, the surface is slightly bubbly.
The taste of the Mulatka variety is excellent. The vegetable pulp contains 14.5% sugar and up to 19.8% dry matter.
Beet roots have a high content of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and microelements
Characteristics of Mulatto beets
The variety belongs to the table variety, it can be used in cooking, for preparations and winter storage.
The period from the appearance of the first shoots to harvesting is 130 days. The yield of Mulatka beets depends on climatic conditions and soil composition. When grown on farms in the Central Black Earth Region, it is 250-400 c/ha, in the Moscow region - 200-300 c/ha. The percentage of commercial output is high, up to 98%.
The frost resistance of Mulatka beets is average, its seedlings easily tolerate return frosts, and ripened root crops are resistant to sharp drops in temperature.
Advantages and disadvantages
Growing Mulatto beets is not difficult; it does not require special care and produces stable, high yields.
During storage, root crops do not wither, maintaining their presentation and beneficial properties until spring.
Among the advantages of the Mulatka variety:
- excellent taste;
- attractive appearance;
- absence of white rings in the root crop;
- preservation of the bright color of beet pulp after heat treatment;
- long shelf life;
- high transportability;
- color resistance.
Flaws:
- the need for good lighting;
- average resistance to pests and diseases.
Planting Mulatto beets
To get an earlier harvest of root crops, the seedling method is used, but most often beets are sown directly in open ground. Loamy or sandy loam soil is suitable for cultivation. If its acidity is high, wood ash or dolomite flour is added in the spring (600 g per 1 m2).
Seedling growing method
The method allows you not only to obtain root crops a month earlier than usual, but also to avoid thinning the seedlings. In addition, Mulatto beets, obtained from seedlings, have a more stable immunity to disease and pests. They operate according to the following scheme:
- Fill the containers with a soil mixture of compost, humus, sand and sawdust mixed in a ratio of 1:1:0.5:0.5.
- Spread the beet seeds over the surface of the soil at intervals of 2 cm.
- Sprinkle with a thin layer of soil mixture.
- Moisturize.
- Cover the top with film, glass or a transparent lid and transfer to a warm place (+20 ⁰C).
- After the first shoots appear, the shelter is removed and the temperature is reduced to +14 ⁰C.
- Ten days before planting, the seedlings are hardened by exposing them to the open air, first for one hour, and a few days later for five to six.
- A week before, reduce watering of Mulatka beets, and a day before planting, moisten the soil with a solution of potassium chloride (2 g per 1 liter of water).
Growing seedlings in a snail saves space and soil
Planting in open ground
Ready seedlings are planted after the threat of return frosts has passed. The soil should warm up to +10 ⁰С. For Mulatto beets, choose a sunny place without shade. Humus or well-decomposed compost (3 kg per 1 m2) is added to the soil2) and 30-40 g of complex mineral fertilizer. They dig to the depth of a bayonet and make ridges. The holes are placed at a distance of 5 cm. Their depth and volume should correspond to the size of the root system along with the earthen ball. Leave a gap of 25 cm between the rows.
Mulatto beets are planted in cloudy rainy weather or in the evening. They use the transshipment method to preserve the integrity of the root system as much as possible. The holes are watered, after which the seedlings are transferred into them and covered with soil.
The root collar of the Mulatto beet should be located at the level of the ground surface
The seedlings are watered with a humate solution and covered with non-woven material for several days to protect the fragile seedlings from direct sunlight.
You can plant Mulatto beets in open ground with seeds (dry or germinated). Untreated planting material (brown or beige) is first placed in a saline solution and after a few hours those seeds that have settled to the bottom are selected.After washing under running water, place them for 12 hours in a weak solution of potassium permanganate for disinfection, and after that - for two hours in a growth stimulator (Epin, Zircon). The seeds are placed in a warm place for a day, where they swell and peck. Then proceed according to the scheme:
- Furrows 2 cm deep are made on the prepared beds.
- Water them.
- Place the seeds at intervals of 2-8 cm.
- Cover with a thin layer of soil.
- Water carefully so as not to wash away the soil.
Caring for Mulatto beets
The main agrotechnical measures when caring for Mulatto beets consist of timely watering, weeding, loosening row spacing, and fertilizing. You should focus on weather conditions, condition and appearance of plants.
Watering, weeding, loosening
Despite the fact that Mulatto beets easily tolerate temporary drought, moistening should be carried out regularly, as the top layer of soil dries. At first, seedlings are watered every other day, later - twice a week. Irrigation is usually combined with subsequent weed removal, loosening, and mulching.
To increase the sugar content of root crops, watering is stopped 2-3 weeks before harvesting.
Top dressing
The use of mineral fertilizers can lead to cracking of root crops and the formation of voids in them. To feed Mulatto beets, you should use organic matter - a solution of mullein infusion (1:8) or bird droppings (1:12). Consumption is 1.2 l per 1 m2 area. The solution is poured into pre-prepared grooves, making them at a distance of 5 cm from the seedlings.
After the foliage closes, the plants are fed with wood ash (one cup per 1 m2) and water abundantly.
Thinning
If not one plant, but two or three, has grown in the nest, thinning is carried out, leaving the strongest one. It is necessary to treat thickened plantings of Mulatka beets if in the 4-5 leaf phase the distance between seedlings is less than 5-6 cm.
To increase the sugar content of root vegetables, water the beets twice a season with a solution of table salt (2 tablespoons per bucket of water)
Possible diseases and pests
If agricultural practices are violated and in difficult weather conditions, Mulatto beets may be susceptible to diseases and attack by pests. Timely response helps to cope with them and save the harvest.
Fomoz
A fungal disease affects the foliage. Pale yellow or brown concentric rings with black dots appear on it. Later, their core rots and dries out. When the first signs of phomosis are detected on Mulatka beets, root fertilizing with brown beet is carried out, and the foliage is sprayed with a solution of boric acid.
The development of Phoma is provoked by prolonged rains, fogs, and increased air and soil humidity.
Downy mildew
Downy mildew or downy mildew damage appears as a purple-gray coating on the back of the leaves. Later, their edges curl, and the leaf blade itself fades and dries out. Diseased root crops of Mulatka beets lose their keeping quality and rot.
To prevent downy mildew, plants are sprayed with fungicides during the formation of root crops.
Corneater or blackleg
The infectious disease is dangerous for young Mulatka beet seedlings. When infected by a root beetle, the stem turns black, becomes thin, and the plant dies. Most often, the root beetle develops on heavy soil with a lack of oxygen in the soil and its high acidity.
In order to prevent blackleg, the soil is limed and treated with borax solution in the fall.
Of the insects, the greatest danger to Mulatto beets are aphids, scale insects, beet flies, cutworms, and flea beets. To combat the first pest, spray with an infusion of onion peels. You can get rid of beet flies, cutworms, flea beetles and scale insects using insecticides (Iskra Bio) or biological products (Gomelin, Bitoxibacillin).
Conclusion
Mulatto beets are unpretentious and grow well in any soil except acidic and waterlogged ones. With minimal care, the variety produces a guaranteed harvest of root crops with excellent taste, which is why gardeners have been choosing it for many years.
Reviews from gardeners about Mulatto beets
