The Station has completed its second season\u27s test of the sugar beet, and the result gives us still better evidence of its crop value to South Dakota both for stock feeding and sugar making. While the crop was not as great either in percent of sugar or yield of roots per acre as may reasonably be expected in more favorable seasons, or by following more strictly the French and German methods of fertilizing and cultivating, it was still sufficiently large to insure it a profitable crop even under the opposing influences of the past season

Foster, L.

Shepard, J.H.

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South Dakota State UniversityOpen PRAIRIE: Open Public Research Access InstitutionalRepository and Information ExchangeBulletins SDSU Agricultural Experiment Station2-1890The Sugar BeetL. FosterSouth Dakota Agricultural CollegeJ.H. ShepardSouth Dakota Agricultural CollegeFollow this and additional works at: http://openprairie.sdstate.edu/agexperimentsta_bulletinsThis Bulletin is brought to you for free and open access by the SDSU Agricultural Experiment Station at Open PRAIRIE: Open Public Research AccessInstitutional Repository and Information Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Bulletins by an authorized administrator of Open PRAIRIE:Open Public Research Access Institutional Repository and Information Exchange. For more information, please contact michael.biondo@sdstate.edu.Recommended CitationFoster, L. and Shepard, J.H., "The Sugar Beet" (1890). Bulletins. Paper 16.http://openprairie.sdstate.edu/agexperimentsta_bulletins/16CJ__J� SOUTH DAKOTA �-:;. - � . •' AGRICULT _TRAL COLLEGE EXPERIM NT STATION, BROOKINGS, SOUTH DAKOTA. 13a.lletin 1'( o. 1 ©. FEBRUARY 1890. DEPARTME�TS OF AGRICULTURE AND CHEMISTRY THE SUGAR BEETe OFFICERS OF THE E2Cperime:nt Station..· BOARD OF TRUSTEES. A. B. SMEDLEY, President, Milbank. 0. T. GRATTAN, Elkton. GEORGE MOREHOUSE, Brookings. JOSEPH HOLT, Esmond. L. H. BAILEY, :Faulkton. JOHN M. ROPER, Parker. Gov. A. 0. :MELLETTE, Ex-Officio. LEWIS McLOUTH, Director. LUTHER FOSTER, Supt. of Agricultural Experiments. CHAS. A. KEFFER, Supt. of Forestry and Horticultural Experiments. I. H. 0RCU'PT, Entomologist . .J AS. H. SHEI' ARD, Chemist. 0. A. CARY, Veterinarian. C. J. COTEY, Stenographer and Accountant. NANCY L. V.rnDoREN, Librarian. J. M. ALDRICH, Assistant Entomologist. JAs. 0. Du:FFEY, Foreman of the Gardens. W. C. COPELAND, Foreman of the ]?arm. ·WILLIAM LAWSON, Herdsman. Any resident of South Dakota can have the bulletins of the Station mailed to him free by addressing a request to the Director at Brook­ings, South Dakota.. Back numbers cannot generally be supplied. Correspondence is invited upon any question relating to £arm interests. (�uestions relating to farm crops or stock should be ad­dressed_ to Professor Foster; questions relating to tree culture or to gardening should be addressed to Professor Keffer; questions relating to insects should be addressed to Professor Orcutt; questions concern­ing the chemical composition of soils or waters should be addressed t-0 Professor Shepard, and questions about the diseases of animals and their treatment should be addressed to Dr. Cary, all at Brookings, South Dakota LEWIS McLOU'I1H, Director Departments of Agriculture and Chem1stry. LU'l'H;ER FOSTER, AGRICUL'l'UIUST. J AS. H. SHEPARD, CHEMIST. THE SUGAR BEET. The Station has completed its second season's test of the sugar beet, and the result gives us still better evidence of its crop value to South Dakota both for stock feeding and sugaT making. While the crop was not as great either in percent of sugar or yield of roots per acre as may reasonably be expected in more favorable seasons, or by following more strictly the French and German methods of fertilizing and cultivating, it was still sufficiently large to insure it a profitable crop even under the opposing influences of the past season. PREPARATION O:F So1L.-In the wbole matter of soil preparation, fertilizing and cultivating, nothing has been attempted that is not with­in the reach of the ordinary farmer, and our results are no better than he may reasonably expect. In mechanical preparation the soil was almost perfect for such a crop, the ground having been deeply plowed and thoroughly pulverized. 'I1he results of long continued experiments in beet growing countries indicate an average depth in plowing of from twelve to fifteen inches to insure the largest and best yield. Deep plow­ing prevents forking; it also provides a depth of mellow soil sufficient for the growth of the root entirely beneath the surface. v-Vhere beets grow partly above the soil the protruding portion becomes tinted, and requires extra work in clarifying the sugar. Fall is the best time for plowing. It leaves a rough uneven surface to weather, catch moisture and settle. The final preparation should be made at planting time, avoiding any plowing or deep stirring that would cause a loss of the accumulated moisture of the winter. Thorough prepara­tion before planting is of prime importance. Any neglect here will be a source of frequent annoyance and delay throughout the season of planting and cultivation.  The clod-crusher and roller will greatly as-sist in thi$ wo:rk. ..) $0UTH DAKOTA AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE FERTILIZING . .......,.The ground used for the experiment had received e. heavy coat of well rotted manure laS't year and was in excellent condi­tion to nourish this season's crop. It is a £act well established by beet growers that a too abundant supply of stable manure lessens the perce:..t of sugar. This results from a period of growth too rank and too much prolonged. To produce sugar the growth must be arrested in time for complete maturity. The dry, clear weather of this climate is favorable to this result. Stable manure should be applied and plowed under in the fall and not more than fifteen tons per acre used. PLANTING.-Experience has taught that the method of planting is 0£ vastly greate:- importance than is ordi.narily considered. It has been shown that not only tho yield per acre but also the percent of sugar de­pends largely on the manner of planting. Thin planting-rows wide apart and plants well separated from each other in the row, gives beets of the largest size but containing a small pe1·cent. of sugar, while the largest yield per acre both in percent of sugar and quantity of beets is obtained from the thickest planting,-rows narrow and beets close together in the row. In Dakota the high price of hand labor and cheapness 0£ land would place the l imit oe thick planting to that width of row that can be easily cultivated with horse implements. That limit has been placed at twenty inches, but even twenty-four inches seems quite nar­row for most of our single cultivators. Our planting in most cases has been made in rows th irty inches apart with the plants thinned to eight inches apart in the row. One-half more plants can be grown with rows only twenty inches apart, and with almost a half greater yield in pounds and a decidedly larger percent of sugar. Our thickest planting was made in rows fourteen inches apart with plants thinned to six inches apart in the row. This planting produced beets smallest in size but uniformly richest in percent of sugar. It is generally admit­ted that the saccharine richness is inversely proportional to the vol­ume of the beet and that close planting gives beets of richer, better quality, of larger yield in weight and percent of sugar and at the same time exhausts the soil less. The past sea.son's planting was done th e tenth day of May by hand. The furrows were made with an ordinary hand marker to whose run­ners had been attached small triangular pieces of wood to deepen and widen the marks. The furrows were one and one-half inches deep; in these the seeds were drilled with a garden seeder and covered with the hoe, the covering being well firmed to make it hold the moisture. The porous shell encasing the seed makes an extra amount of moisture necessary" to reach the real seed within and cause it to grow. In this dry climate care should be taken to put the seeds down fully an inch and a half in order to secure the moisture needed to start them. Gar­den seed drills when used for planting should be in the hands of skill­ful operators to insure satisfactory results. Hand-planting has re­sulted best in om work. Germination may be hastened by soaking the seeds in hot water for twenty-foµr lwqrs just before :planting. Ther Cq,U �asil,y- be m�d� AND U. S. EXPERIMENT STATION. dry enough to plant with a machine by rolling them in plaster or dry soil. V .A.RIETIES PLA.NTED.-Thefollowing is a list of the varieties planted with the names of the firms from which the seeds were purchased and the price paid for them per pound. When planted with a drill from six to ten pounds per acre will be required, the amount depending up­on the distancA the rows are placed apart. Imperial, Silisian and red­top were furnished by D. Landreth & Sons, Philadelphia, .at 4.0 cts. per pound. Vilmorins imperial, _ Lane's improved and white sugar came from J. 0. Vaughan, Chicago, the first at 60 cts. and the others at 40 cts. per pound. Saher's imperial and sweet white, John A. Salzer, of La Crosse, supplied at 20 cts. per pound. In some instances the varieties are . the same, no doubt, with dif­ferent names. CuLTIV ATION.-Early cultivation will kill the weeds at starting and form a layer 0£ mellow earth which constitutes an obstacle to dryness. The loosened. layer acts as a mulch and tends to keep the soil below cooler while it pre.vents the water from reaching the surface to be evaporated. The crop of the past season was twice hoed and four times cultivat­ed. The implement used for the latter was an adjustable spring-tooth cultivator. This work began so011 after the plants were up and con­tinued until the middle of July. THINNING.-This work_ can best be done just after a rain. The plants should be thinned to the proper distance in th0 row before the roots begin to develop. Where the planting is done with a drill, a. sharp hoe may be used for thinning. 'I1he cutting must be deep enough to preven(any after growth of the roots cut off. In case the extra plants are pulled out, care should be taken not to loosen those that remain standing and thus check their growth. If the weather is favorable at the time of thinning the blank places may be filled in by transplanting, ' but.'the roots of the latter are usually found in several divisions instead of a single tap root. [.',! HARVESTING. -'fhe crop should be pulled and stored in the root cel­lar or put in piles convenient for covering in the field before there is any danger of injury:from freezing. In th is respect they require more at­tention than other root crops. A temperature low enough to freeze the surface of the ground will destroy their keeping qualities. Beets injured in this manner should be fed out at once that they may not be an entire loss. Though the injury may seem at first very slight ex­perience has shown us that they soon become spongy, then turn black and finally rot. The usual plan o:f twisting off the tops as the beets are pulled has proven in om· experience the safest and most economic method. While turnips, rutabagas and carrots are not materially injured for keeping by having the root cut or broken, a beet so injured is apt to decay wh�;q. storeq.1 �TORING.-Sugar beets ��q. mangt�� require the ��IQ.e •re?itp:ient in �tora�e, SOUTH DAKOTA AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE Th�y should be placed in cool, moist cellars, making the piles not to exceed four feet in depth. In our dry Dakota cellars it is best to cover with damp earth to keep them from wilting. This will also help to protect from freezing. The dirt must be put directly on the beets, no straw or litter of any kind intervening. In this way we have kept them in the best condition into May. YALU E FOR STOCK-F E E D I N G. For feeding, the sugar "beet and mangle are the most reliable of all tbe root crops. Taken as a whole they have fewer enemies and are less liable to failure than almost any other crop grown in the state. They are less liable to disease than either rutabagas or turnips, and less easily affected by drouth. 'rhey also surpass them for feed­in percent of digestible nutrients. When the feeding value of one hundred pounds of sugar beets is nineteen cents, that of one hundred pounds of rutabagas is fifteen and of turnips only eleven cents. When properly stored they keep in good condition for feeding longer than any other root crop, under favorable circumstances keep­ing clear through the feeding season until the grass is ready to pasture in the spring. Both · the feeding and keeping qualities depend upon complete maturity . Bulk of crop is not the only thing to be sought, neither are roots of unusually large size desirable. For the most satis­factory results in feeding, seek rather the weight in many roots of med­ium size perfectly ripened. Roots can not be relied on to supersede either hay or grain, but by being fed with them they greatly increase the value of both. Their succulence makes them an excellent stom­ach regulator, preventing the constipation that frequently comes from the continued use of dry foods. It is this quality, too, that makes them of special value to the dairyman for keeping up the flow of milk. They replace to a large degree the green succulent food of summer. All the stock on the farm relish sugar beets in winter. Sheep do ex­cellently on them, and the greater part of their winter's supply of food may come from this source. A quantity should always be kept for ewes that Yean their lambs before the grass starts. It should be noted, however, that for some time before the lambs come the ewe's ration of roots Ef.hould be small since it is generally conceded that a full supply at this time has a tendency to produce abortion. Hogs kept through the winter for breeding purposes should have a daily allowance of cut or pulped beets in connection with their dry food. They can thus be more economically kept, and they come through the winter healthier and in every way better prepared to far­row and raise their pigs. In all cases the roots fed should be cut into pieces small enough to prevent choking. A spade may be used for this pnrpose, but a root cutter is more convenient and does the work better and much more rapidly. The beets were analyzed the last week in Qctober. All the sam­ples were in good condition. Samples 10, 11 and 12 were of the same variety, and were pla.nted in di1feren.t width� of rows Fl-A<l �t q.i;fferent AND U. 8. EXPERIMEN'l' STATION. distances apart in the row. No. 1 1  was planted in rows 30 inches apart and thinned to eight inches. No. 11 was thinly planted and No. 12 was phmted very thickly. :From an inspection of the table which follows it will be seen that the sugar yield depends largely on the manner of planting, other things being equal. It will also be inter­esting to compare the yield of sugar with the size of the beets : SAMPLE 8. - FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights-N o. 1, 0 lbs 12oz. No. 2, l lb !oz. No. 3, l lb 10!-oz. No. 4, 2 lbs 2!oz. SAMPLE 9.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights-No. 1, O. lbs 10ioz. No. 2, 2 lbs 4loz. No. 3, 2 lbs lO!oz. No. 4, 2 lbs lQ-oz. SAMPLE 10.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights -N o. 1, 0 lbs 11 ioz. No. 2, 1 Th 5loz. No. 3, 2 lbs 12oz. No. 4, 3 Ths 13foz. SAMPLE 1 1. --FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights--· No . 1, 2 lbs 13oz. No. 2, 4 lbs 13oz. No. 3, 7 lbs 15!oz. No. 4, 15 lbs 8-!oz. S.A.MPLJ� 12.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weigbts-N o. 1, 1 lb lfoz. No. 2, l lb Sfoz. No. 3, 1 lb 14!oz. No. 4, 2 lbs 7 foz. Weights-. SA.MPLE 13.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. N o. 1, 1 lb foz. No. 2, l lb 15foz. No. 3, 3 lbs 4foz. No. 4, 5 lbs q-oz. SAMPLE 14.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights --No. 1, 0 tbs 9!oz. No. 2, llb 6oz. No. 3, 2lbs 2oz. No. 4, 3lbs 14!oz. SAMPLE 15.-FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights-No. 1, llb 2foz. No. 2, 1 lb 13oz. No. 3, 2lbs 7oz. No. 4, 4lbs 7foz. SAMPLE 16.--FOUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights-N o. 1, Olbs 15loz. No. 2, 2lbs 3loz. No. 3, 2lbs 9-!oz. No. 4, 5lbs 12ioz. SAMPLE 17.-I•'OUR BEETS TAKEN. Weights--No. 1, Olbs 13joz. No. 2, Olbs 15oz No. 3, llb 13!oz. No.- 4, 2lbs 14oz. In selecting samples £or analysis, twelve beets of each variety were sent to the ]aboratory. These ranged from the smallest to the largest average beet which the variety afforded. At the laboratory four piles were made and from each pile an average beet was taken, thus securing a fair representation for each sample. In obtaining the degree Brix, the pulp was placed in a canvaa bag and the juice was forced out by hand. No press was available. SOUTH DAKOTA AGRICULTURAL COLLEGE. "o I ..... 0 � g 8 o ·  � � � ·a s _ z� ..., ::i ...... • a .: §: Name. @� �7 : ;:g � Condition of pulp. �i 1 � � �2, g ·;;;e, � w 11. � @ � @ i 'W!:11!� : : : : : : : : b': I ?iiilll 1 1; g ;f-3_�_lg-:- r-�'Y-m-. e_w_b_a_t _d_ry ___ _ 10 Lane 's .Improved �ordinary planting) . .  88_' 3 1200 10 . 2  15 . 3  3 .56 Somewhat dry. 11 Lane's Improved thinly planted) . . . . . .  ?0 1 4840 5 . 4  10 . 4 3 . 12 Moderately dry. 12 Lane's Improved thickly planted) . . . . . 50 Hl680 9 .9 15 . 2 31� DD. 11:yy . ft J1�peri�I _. . .  _ . . . . . .  _. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . �f i:�320 i -� if? � -�5 DD11:�·. 13 IRed Top . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . _ 7,5 2:3?50 10 . 2  15 . l . V1lmonns Jmpenal . . . . . . .  . . . . . .  . . . . . .  . .  ,h-!00 L. .. u ·" I · J 16 Salzer's .Imperial . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 88 29070 11 .0 1 4 . 6  3 . 27 Moderately dry. 17 Sweet White . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63 32500 11 . 2  15 . G 3 . 91 , Dry. Again hope is expressed that farmers will raise small quantities of the sugar beet. All samples delivered at the Station .laboratory will be analyzed free of charge. ' 

The Sugar Beet

The Station began its work in the cultivation of the sugar beet three years ago, the single object of the experiment being to determine if the sugar beet, containing a per cent of sugar large enough for profitable manufacture, could be grown here in South. Dakota. Methods of planting, fertilizing and cultivating came in as secondary matters only, those already established in France and Germany being followed as nearly as seemed practical for our new soil and higher priced hand labor. The high sugar percent being now satisfactorily settled, the attention of the Station may, in the future, be directed to the economic production of the crop

The Sugar Beet

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