The Ogden standard. [volume] (Ogden City, Utah) 1902-1910, 1910-04-11
WHY SUGARBEETS
HELP THE LAND

Inc Following Is taken from speech
OF truman G. Palmer. secretary Of the
american Beet Sugar association:
40 farmer who farms sugar heets
IN slipshod manner can make a cent
AZ the business. Shlftless methods
may Yield a small profit when produc.
ing most OF our other crops. but every
farmer Who does not take reasonably
good care Of his sugar bects will lose
money on the crop. and wherever you
hnd farmers making money in raising
sugar Oeets II is safe 10 conclude that
IN the production OF this crop. at ichst.
they arc usins better methods than do
those who do not raisc boots. In due
course OF time the employment OF
these better cultural methods extend
TO other crops and then you have a
scientific farmer. In the next place.
sugar beet culture rids the land of
weeds, Wild oats and other undcsir-
able vegetation. And now We come
10 the greatest factor of all.
In plowing for grain We usually
turn the soil over 10 a depth OF six
inches. sometimes seven. but moro Of
ten five. Beneath the soil We turn
over. the ground Is so hard tho grain
will not penetrate II and consequently
all the nutriment our crops receive is
drawn from the five 10 seven inches
OF top soil. To prepare tho soil for
sugar beetS a subsoilcr is employed
which stirs the soil TO a depth OF
from twelve TO fourteen inches The
general conception OF the sugar beets
Is that II IA one large root. but this
Us erroneous. In addition to the main
root there arc a multitude OF small
6brous roots which nourish the main
one. These nbrous roots go down as
deep as the earth is stirred and some
times deeper. When the main roots
arc plowed up In the fall these 6hrous
roots are broken of In the ground.
and, in rotting. add humus TO the low
er strata OF soil. also leaving minute
intersuoes to the full depth that they
have penetrated. When other crops
follow bects. the roots. Instead OF go
ing down 10 the depth of blowing only.
find the little enriched interstices left
by the dccayed minute beet roots and
following them on down they draw
nutriment from twelve inches OF soil
instead of from six inches of soil. In
other words the culture OF bects
doubles the soil without adding to tho
acreage.
With perfect stand of beets We
get 5000 beets 10 the acre. You
will observe that while all OF the
longer 1brouS roots are broken off Gin
the harvesting). many OF them are
sull from one TO two feet In length
land left In the ground) When dried
these Abrous roots from each beet
will perhaps weigh about two ounces,
possibly even less than one ounce. II
they average but three-quarters OF an
ounce To the beet. they carry down
into the under strata of the soil over
one ton OF humus per acre. Is it any
wonder that such wonderful results
are obtained through rotating other
crops with sugar beetS? How much
money do you suppose II would take
10 purchase a ton Of decayed vege'
table matter and distribute II evenly
over an acre OF ground and then bury
il to depth of from six TO fourteen
inches, where It Is most needed
Such an operation In a field of any
size would bankrupt any ordinary far
mer Yet this Is just what the culture
OF sugar beets does 5or our farmers,
and at no expense whatever In fact
it does II for him aud pays for the
privilege of doing II. iu0smuch as
without considering this advantage,
tho beets yield the farmer the great
est profit OF any crop he can raise.
Besides this. sugar Is carbon, hydro
gen and oxygen. drawn wholly from
the atmosphere. being merely the sun
light, the rain and the wind which
sweep over the fields. The farmer who
turns back all the byprcducts loses
nothing from his soil while with
wheat, every 80 bushels carry away
80 pounds of nitrogen. 20 pounds OF
phosphoric acid. and &c pounds OF pot.
ash, fertIllzIng elements which today
are worth S92S in the markets of the