The Ladysmith news and Ingram news. [volume] (Ladysmith, Wis.) 1905-1906, 1905-05-13
BEET SUGAR INDUSTRY.
University of Wisconsin Experiment
Station Makes interesting Report.

u Uu0 UCSC sugar luuuoIIy Ill WlSCOu-
sin is strikingly shown by the stats
tics of last seasons product, just COM
piled by the State University expert
ment station. During the past year
over $4,000 tons of beets were grown
by Wisconsin farmers, for which they
received nearly $635,00O From these
beets the four beet sugar factories
produced over 27000,0O0 pounds of
white granulated sugar, the value of
which was $1,363, 200. The four fac
tories receiving beets from Wisconsin
farmers, located at Menomonie Falls,
GAINESVILLE, Chippewa Falls, Wis, and
Menominee, Mich, represent an in
vestment of about 100000, and dur
ing the season employ 882 hands with
a monthly pay roll of $67,800. Over
SITS Wisconsin farmers furnished
beets to these factories last year from
ID, 400 acres planted with sugar beets.
The experimental work which paved
the way for the beet sugar industry in
Wisconsin. was commenced by the
university agricultural experiment
station in 1889. During the past fif-
teen years a series of experiments
have been carried on under the direc-
ton of Prof. F. w. Woll, both at the
university farm and in various parts
of the state.
These experiments, the results of
which have just been published in the
University Experiment Station Bulle-
tin, show that the sugar beets can be
successfully grown in practically all
parts of the state. The statistics of
beets grown on the university farm
show an average yield for eleven
seasons of over ia tons of beets per
acre. The average yield of sugar dur
ing these seasons, which included
dry, wet, cold and medium ones, has,
therefore, been about two and One-half
tons per acre, at least so per cent
more than the average yield in any
factory district of this or any other
country. This may, accordingly, be
considered the correct average results
for yield and quality of beets grown
on Wisconsin soil for series of years
under a good method of culture.
In order to determine the adaptable
ity Of the soil and climate of different
sections of the state for raising sugar
beets, high grade beet seeds have
been distributed to the farmers, who
have been encouraged to submit the
beets grown to the experiment sta
ton for analysis. AS a result nearly
5000 samples of sugar beets from all
parts of the state have been analysed
by the experiment station chemists.
The average content of sugar has
been found to be Ii per cent with a
purity of 70 per cent, while the aver
age yield as reported by the farmers
has been 14.08 tons per acre. Since
many of the farmers had no previous
experience in growing sugar beets,
and often did not give them the spe-
cial attention necessary to produce re-
suits, these results are not as high as
those obtained at the university farm,
but they indicate that sugar beets OF
excellent quality can be grown in this
state and that no difficulty need be
experienced in reaching and exen eX-
ceeding the factory standard for
sugar content and purity.
TSL1 in ornuinor hQQfS
in various parts of the state under
the direction of the station show that
the entire eastern, extreme northwest
ern. and middle northern sections OF
the state are especially adapted to
raising sugar beets, for most of the
samples received from these sections
have been very rich in sugar and have
been of a high purity. The samples
received from the counties in the
southwestern part Of the state, in
what is known to the biologists as
the driftless area, have been of rath-
er low sugar content and purity, and
it seems, therefore, that beets cannot
be successfully grown in this section,
except, possibly, as a result OF special
fertilization. It is generally recog-
nized by experts who have studied
the situation in the state, that Wis
consin, with the exception OF this one
section, is one of the most favorable
states in the Union for growing sugar
beets, since the beets produced here
are large size, of very high sugar con-
tent, and of more than average purity.
AS a result of the campaign carried
on in the interest of sugar beet grow
ing in Wisconsin, four factories have
been established within the past four
years. The first began successful op-
Grafton at Menomonie Falls in 1901;
the second at Menominee, Mich,
which may be regarded as a Wiscon-
sin factory since it receives at least
70 per cent of it's beets from W1scon-
sin farmers, was built in 1903; and
the other two, at Chippewa Falls and
GAINESVILLE, began operations last year.
The Menomonie Falls factory last
wear manufactured over 100000
pounds of white graduated sugar
from $4,000 tons of beets, and paid
out to the farmers S250,000- Each OF
the other factories produced over