Santa Fe new Mexican. [volume] (Santa Fe, N.M.) 1898-1951, 1906-12-11
SUGAR BEETS
NEW INDUSTRY
For San Juan Coun-
ty---Many to Be
Raised.
APPLES THE LEADING CROP
George Allen, Orcbardist of
Pennington Tells of
Garden Spot.

San Juan County promises to be
come as famous for raising sugaI
beets as 1t Is now for producing fin,
fruits. Experiments with sugar beet
in that part of the country have de
monstrated that they can be grown a!
successfully there as in the irrigated
districts of Colorado. A sugar bee
raised in the county this. season
weighed twenty-five and half pounds
George Allen of Pennington, who
has been visitor for several days il
Santa Fe and left last evening fol
Phoenix, stated yesterday that every
thing had practically been settled fol
the erection of sugar beet factor,
at Durango, Colorado He said tina
the source of its supply would come
from La Plata and Montezuma coun
ties in Colorado and San Juan Count!
in New Mexico. Contracts have al
ready been signed in the three coun
'iOo Suui uHttSiHS liC DidlitiIS VI o,Vo'
acres, and the officials of the company
backing the enterprise do not antici
pate any difficulty in having this
acreage increased to 10000.
Big Sugar Factory at Durango,
Colorado.
1T is proposed to build a million
dollar sugar beet factory at Durango
Mr.. Allen informed reporter of the
New Mexican, "A good share of the
5000 acres which will be planted in
sugar beets have been signed up in
San Juan County. II this refinery
meets with the anticipated success ii
means that within two or three years
a sugar beet factory will be built at
either Aztec or Pennington. The
sugar beet industry will bring in a
different class of farmers from what
we now have and they are needed
badly.
"Tests made with sugar beets ir
various parts of the county this yeal
show very high percentage of sac
charine matter, which averages even
better than they do in the heart OF
the sugar beet section around Rocky
Ford. They are larger in size for the
most part too. Edward Foster of Aztec
received package of sugar beet
seeds early in the season which he
planted and it was from these that he
raised one weighing twenty-five and q
half pounds.
Beets Will Prove a Profitable Cror
in San Juan.
"Mr. Mitchell of Rocky Ford, an ex
pert who has been looking over the
country for the past month and was
largely instrumental in interesting the
farmers in the sugar beet industry is
sanguine that the big white beets car
be grown profitably in San Juar
County He is of the opinion that they
can be raised in some parts with only
one irrigation. He told me that the
sugar beet proposition in the vicinity
of Rocky Ford has developed so that
il is far more profitable than raising
the justly famous Rocky Ford canta
loupes. He said that the Rocky Ford
farmers are clearing from $40 to SIC
annually per acre raising sugar beets
He is confident that there is not an
acre in San Juan County that can moi
net at least $40. Seven years ago he
bought land near Rocky Ford at ST.
per acre which he planted in sugar
beets and recently he refused an offel
of 5000 AL acre for it. He said the
land was worth $500 an acre to hin
now.
Zone advantage in raising sugar
beets is the market They are con
tracted for by the refineries at the
rate of $5 per ton There is no slid
ing scale and no inspection is requir
ed. Five dollars ton is paid regard
less of the size. The sugar beet fac
tories also pay the freight whether
shipped from five or fifty miles away
The Rocky Mountain sugar beets are
claimed to be superior to those pro
duced in Germany. 1t is asserted that
they contain on an average of about
five per cent more saccahrine matter.
Mr.. Allen Has Found Money in
Apples.
Mr.. Allen is engaged in fruit rails
ing and has an orchard two miles
from Pennington. He makes speci
atty of apples and has large orchard
in bearing. He has prospered since
locating in the valley. The country
side around his place is rapidly filling
with new fruit ranches. Asked about
the fruit crop this year he said:
q am not in a position to give any
positive figures but the fruit crops
this season have been the best in the
history of San Juan County, This is
especially true of apples. The yielt
has been something enormous con
sidering the acreage in bearing or
chards. To say nothing of home con
sumption we have shipped in the
neighborhood of two hundred cars Of
apples. One hundred car loads We're
shipped from Pennington. under
stand that there are considerable more
apples that have not yet been market
ed. The quality and size of these
apples are well known. No finer grow
anywhere and they sell readily al
fancy prices.
Many New Orchards Being Planted in
San Juan.
''The sale of fruit trees has been