Where Did Beets Come from?

Beets are believed to originate along the coasts of the Mediterranean (sea beets) and were first cultivated for their edible leaves. The Greeks, like the Romans, cultivated beets for their leaves, but ate them as food and called them teutlon or teutlion, because the foliage resembled squid tentacles.

When did beets come to America?

Beets were brought to North America by American colonists, but it is not known when for certain. They were well established by the eighteenth century, as mention is made of chard, and red, white, and yellow beetroot being grown in U.S. gardens in the early 1800's.

When did beets originate?

The root part of the beet was cultivated for consumption in either Germany or Italy, first recorded in 1542. Its earliest form more closely resembled a parsnip rather than the bulbous shape we're now familiar with, which began appearing near the end of the 1500s.