The Columbian. [volume] (Bloomsburg, Pa.) 1866-1910, 1880-03-05
Agricultural.
The Sugar beet and the beet sugar.

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lion of the premiums awarded by the Della
ware Sugar Beet Commissioners, as well as
the report of the Riverside Works. The
subject being Of 50 much importance, hope
you will find space for few remarks have
10 make on it:
The results obtained by the beet growers
seem from a manufacturing point of view
encouraging, although the quality of the
beet to some extent is sacrificed for the guam
tity, and it it is very much to be regretted |
that the richness of the beet in sugar and
the purity of juice ate not the points
that carry the premiums, the farmer being
naturally interested in large yield, so that
no encouragement on this point is needed.
From what here have said you will un
derstand that think that John Satteiiield,
premium ior his beets, which contained
IL 2S per cent sugar, the yield per acre being |
at the rate of l5l tons, and it is certainly a |
pity to see these beets coming in as the very |
last. As hinted above, the purity Of the |
juice is very important matter.
The Impurities of the juice consist main
ly of salts Of potassa, ammonia, magnesia
aud others, and of organic matter album.
inoid4, &C., and the juice is not thought OF
much value to the factory if it in 100 parts
of solid matter does not contain at least 10
per cent. of sugar. According to this it
will be understood how important it is to
grow beets rich in sugar aud poor in i'm
purities
To obtain this result, you should by all
means avoid the use Of barnyord manure,
direct to the beet crop, as this, as well as ar.
tifcial nitric fertilizers, are found to cause
considerable increase in the impurities,
which probably is due to the great develop
ment of the roots. The sugar consists OF
hydrogen oxygen and carbon, which the
plants extract from the air which explains
firstly. the great Importance of the leaves
secondly, why the sugar does not increase
with the salt and the size of the beet
From the above, it will be understood
that the value of the beet decreases more
rapidly than the contents of sugar; so that
a beet of per. cent sugar is not worth hall
as much as one containing twelve per cent.
The bright prospect Is, az you will under
stand not to be found in the percentage of sug.
ar contained in the beets under notice, but
to be found in the very considerable yield
per acre obtained twelve to fifteen tons pei
acre being in Europe considered fair av.
erage yield, whereas Mr.. L. c. Fenimore, o
odessa, who carried first premium for beet'
of 10 81 per cent. sugar reaches q tons pei
acre.
How Mr. F. has cultivated his land DE-
not know, but l consi Jer it highly probable
that he has nsed barnyard manure or othe
nitric fertilizers direct to the crop, and ha
grown high beets in rows at a distance o
about 80 inches from one another, Now, l
this system has been modified according t
the rules that govern The European bee
growing it is more than probable, that
real good beet with sugar contents of
per cent. or above might have been pro
duced. What here is said of Mr.. F's GRO
can more or less be applied to the Other
too, and here lies the encouragement whic
can be derived from the present results, al
though it, at the same time, must be di-
tinctly borne in mind that ten per cent 81
gar is too little.
As to the future success of the beet trad
in this country, it must, in the first plac
be said to depend upon the farmers VIII
grows the beet. The factory can only eX
tract the sugar, not produce it, and as tn
beet is the result will be.
The sugar beet is plant that requires
high culture, so much so indeed that it ca
be said to be the flower of the high cultur
of European farming.
The beet requires deep rich soil and wei
drained soil, free from too much weed
The deepness of the soil, that is to say th
depth which you can plow without bring
ing raw and unfertle earth to the surface
can only very gradually be increased. /
deepening the soil you must be governe
by the amount of manure which you ca
expend on the ground, ard which, if yo
in the course of few years increase you
depth two or three inches, amounts to ver
considerable quantities. Ga this poir
must, however, be made in distinction b'
tween organic and ignorganic manures Ii
last-named being geneally found abunC
thus only refers to barnyard and other n
trio manures.
What, however, at once "an and must
done is looseing the sub-oli, which oPcr
it up TO the beneficial Influence of the a
and gradually mixes it with the f rti
earth above. Wher steam is used for pillow
ing this can of course, best be done t
steam grubbing, but in Europe it IS gem
rally found cheaper to use horse gruob'
that follows The plow in the new mao
farms. A rich soil implies proper amouI
of organic an inorganic matter found III
state accessible to the plant, and the DOT
main manures required by the beet plant al
- nitrogenous Manures, phosphate-, lime an
potassa.
The last named is generally found
abundance in the soil, and need therefor
not be added. The contents of the soil
lime is very variable, and where it is wan
ing it should be given. Where grain an
clover have been grown for years phosph'
ric acid is likely to be somewhat wantiu
and this is nitrogenous manures should
added. The best and cheapest nitric fert
lizer is in most cases found IN the barnyaI
manure, which also contains a good man
other substance mainly dependent upon tn
food given the cattle The barnyard N,
nure should be kept as well protected frol
the influence of the sun and rain as poss
BILE. In Europe lofty stables, with mOvab
cribs where the manure accumulates belo
the cattle, has of late years come much il
to use and answers that purpose exec
lantly.