30 Director's Keport of the 



It is fair to remark, also, that if a careful record were kept of 

 the labor expended in growing other crops, long established, the 

 relation of cost to production might in many cases appear to be 

 unfavorable to profit. We are applying to the sugar beet crop a 

 record and analysis of cost in a way not generally attempted with 

 general farm crops, which is somewhat unfair in an effort to judge 

 of relative profits. 



It is somewhat doubtful whether widespread experiments on 

 limited areas, such as have been conducted for two years, can be 

 continued profitably. Such experiments will hardly furnish 

 reliable evidence concerning anything more than the quantity and 

 quality of beets produced, and with regard to these two points we 

 are now warranted in reaching conclusions. The work of* the 

 experiment station in the future should be confined to a study of 

 certain problems of production as affecting quality and yield. 



For instance, we have been taught that farm manures should 

 not be applied to land in the spring prior to growing a crop of 

 sugar beets, and that the use of large quantities of nitrogenous 

 fertilizers is antagonistic to high quality. 



Experiments on the Station farm and on that of Mr. Dawley 

 do not support these conclusions. On the Station farm, beets 

 grown on land to which was applied in the spring 10 cords per 

 acre of barn manure were as a whole richer than those with or 

 without commercial fertilizers, were healthier and in appearance 

 were a more satisfactory crop. Large additions of nitrogen as 

 nitrate of soda and dried blood did not appear to depress the pro- 

 portion of sugar. These observations should be continued in 

 order to establish the facts, and other problems of equal interest 

 wait for solution. 



The difficult questions which confront the beet sugar industry 

 in this country are now those of a commercial character which 

 relate to production and manufacture. To be sure farmers need 

 to be educated in methods, but nothing will accomplish this so 

 effectually as actual experience in growing beets in a commercial 



