Beta vulgaris 'Pablo'

Beetroot, Beta vulgaris, is easy to grow and makes the perfect crop for 'beginner' gardeners. Roots are usually cylindrical or globe-shaped, and range in colour from darkest purple-red to pink, yellow and even white. Harvest them when they are young – no bigger than a golf ball – and eat them pickled, roasted, or grated and used in salads. Don't forget the leaves, which can also be harvested – use young greens in salads and older ones blanched like spinach.

Beta vulgaris 'Pablo' is a fantastic beetroot, bearing smooth, perfectly round roots in deepest dark red. The flesh is sweet, making 'Pablo' perfect for eating grated and raw in salads. Roots can be used as baby beets but also left to mature, without danger of them becoming 'woody'. Mature roots store well into winter.