Rocky Ford enterprise., 1902-02-14

have been called upon to deliver be-
fore YOU to-day. u one OF such grrn'
Importance and breadth In the science
~ sugar beet culture that II cannot
b,. treated as. fully In the time, gwen
as 1 should Hike. nut ! VIII endcnsor
10 elucI,iate Its most Important points
this afternoon. so that you may aR.'
away with you u proper conception .,
th. necessity OF devoting more energy
,nJ labor 10 the preparatory work, ar
we'll as the actual performances OF
thIs particular branch II intensive
fnrmIng-..thc seeding Of sugar bee'-'
As 1 am well aware that quite
few of YOU will accuse me OF too inucii
theory and school teaching. hn"
thai Won will not grasp nj once Inc
full value aud Importance OF 'hir pl.
p.r. 1 wish TO say that ! nave eit
the school bench some fourteen years
ago, and have ever sine. devoted my
time 10 agricultural pursuits, such as
farming ON large scale III thc West
dniryiur. breeding cattle, ana inrt'
,.n, moi lcast. raising sugar bects under
my own direction ns well as unue.
my ,uperyIsIon by many hunureh
farmers in the United States. nnd TINS
las, fnct may prove to you that only
my practical knowledge has been ih'
siruiucntul In the success, tor our Nv
,.rn,.,. tIllcr OF the soil turns his back
very ouIckly to the schoolmastcr anu
,hcor,tIcul teacher, whose teachings
h, invariably ridicuics, and this unior'
tunatcly very often 10 his own a'-h"'
vantage. You might also accuse me,
In the course OF this lecture. OF hot
entirely sticking to the subject, ou.
In order to treat II fniiy anu 'naN,
valuable To the granger In general
have made such as l considered nee
,s.nry to fully cover the ground.
..'rh. seeding OF sugar bccts con.
,sIs,, OF the preliminary or fall work
and til. actual or spring work. anu
IN order to explain those two opera
,Ion. In detail, u general review OF the
.oli conditions II necessary. as We have
AWAY. TO return from time To time
In thi. most essential part In sugar
is,., cui,ur,.-thc seed bed. or rather
th,. soil. out Of which II Is prepared.
Soll-Ncxt to the ciininticai conuitioh
the soil is the most Important inc'"'
In the culture OF sugar bccis, ana cS.
.ry grower must be fully convinced
,hnt he has the kind OF soil suitable
for the cultivation of this crop, before
Ia. undertakes to engage In TINS
branch OF farming. The soil shouiu
IN, nnt too heavy and not too iiSht-
IL should bc deep and warm. anu nis"
h,v. warm sub-soii. Cold soils,
which have invariably stnInant moist
ur,. with no outflow. nrc tie enemy
Of the crop, In fact. OF NIL fnrtn crops.
MS they diminish the quality ns well
MS the quantity beyond cnicuinHo".
Such soils arc easily rccogniHcu. w
they will always show standing water
In ia,y n,nc,- after rain or Irrigation.
and wherever these. signs appear
drainage Is necessary. though not NJ
WAYS drainage OF the entire area. NJ
In many Instances partial drainage has
,h,. desired effect. Very heavy soil.
which. when saturated with the moist
mr., OF winter, forms heavy clods ana
is therefore In the spring only capable
OF ,illngc late and with difficulty. loses
M once this tendency TO form ciods II
the necessary quantity OF lime Is ap.
plied to Il. Lime also gives warih,h
TO the surface OF the soil. we are LOT
,unntc. however. In having very little
NJ s,,ch soil In this valley. rs the soils
OF the arid regions are well supphcu
with lime, and therefore most OF our
heavy lands are worked comparauvci!
cnsIiy when worked at the proper
time. You are, no doubt. all aware oi
the fact that the presence OF IA sum
cheney of lime In the soil Is the most
Imnortnpt condition Of nll for the sue
! ccssful cultivation of the sugar beets,
and moreover for the production OF
farm crops generally. and the yielus
of this years crop amply prove the
presence of this reliable soil insreuieh'
I, In the Arkansas valley.
y Condition OF Field Intended for a
Sugar Beet Crop-In order to grow ana
mature TO n perfect beet. the sugar
beet needs n deeply looscned, well.mei-
!. lowed soil. which shows Il UNIFORM
\ mixture and offers TO the plant every
where easily available and absorbabie
plnnt food. The soil must not be al-
lowed to run together and thus oHer
resistance to the penetration OF the At
mosphcrc for the purpose OF dccom.
posing manure and plant food. as wen
ms to the best development OF the beet'
II must be free from weeds ana DE III
the proper condition to receive and re.
tain moisture, as well as 10 dispose oI
n too large amount Of the Inter into
the sub soil, and last, but not least, u
must possess n surface suitable for the
Unloading, terminating ana growing
l of the seed. In order to achieve all
These requirements and conditions
,lifrerent processes of work Will have
to be resorted to, according to the ma
tnre of the soil, as well as to the ell
matte conditions, but aside from these
tbe experience of years has established
certain rules which must be observed
everywhere IL u profitable crop shall
be raised.
Fall Work-One of the principles OF
beet culture is the deep cultivation OF
the soil. and whatever the opinion or
Individual farmers may be on this par
!, ticular point. nobody can deny the
lonr.estnblished fact that sugar beet
raising and shallow cultivation can
never successfully be practiced for any
length of time. and field that does
not permit of deep plowing Is unht i9r
n beet crop. The development of side
roofs of the beet Is rather limited.
since It forms III its earliest stage OF
vegetation top root. whose quick