FIELD CROPS 857 



A table is given showing the quality of the beets selected according to certain leaf 

 characters, and the author recommends such selection in tlie improvement of the 

 beet. 



A number of beets were divided into 6 concentric rings and each ring analyzed. 

 The results show that the outer portions contained the least sugar, while the portion 

 halfway between the center and the outer portion was richest. 



Notes on the selectioii of seed beets are summarized as follows: " Select only those 

 with flat tops, single crowns, smooth bulbs, good shoulders, growing well under- 

 ground with short and firm leafstalks bearing flat yellowish green leaves, bull)s well 

 supplied with feeding roots coming from well defined long dimi)les in cheek of l)eet 

 and only those rich in sugar." 



Late growth of sugar beets, A. G. Doyarexko {ZJtur. Opuitn. Agron. \_Jour. 

 E.rpt. Landv.}, 3 {1902), No. 4, pp. 516-518). — Analyses of sugar beets harvested 

 September 1, 10, 20, and 30 showed that the last sample harvested represented an 

 increase in yield of 20.3 per cent and that the quality of the beets gradually deterio- 

 rated from the earlier to the later date of harvesting. — p. fireman. 



Experiments with sugar cane, J. B. Harrison [Rpt. Agr. Work Bot. Card. 

 [Britis]t Gnidixi'], 1S9G-1901, pp. 12-133). — Results of variety and fertilizer experi- 

 ments with sugar cane for the years 1896-1901 are reported. The detailed results are 

 given at some length in tabular form. 



The analyses and yields of old varieties of cane are given, and the record of each 

 variety is briefly noted. The tests with seedling canes showed that the richness of 

 the parent cane does not indicate the probable richness of the seedling or canes 

 propagated from it by cuttings. In a few cases seedlings exhibited a tendency to 

 approximate the sugar content of the parent plant. The percentage of non-sugars in 

 the juice seemed also free from hereditary influences. The glucose ratio and in part 

 the (quotient of purity were governed by the degree of maturity. The size of indi- 

 vidual canes did not seem to affect the size of the offspring, l)ut the average size of the 

 parent varieties closely governed the size of the seedlings. Although most seedlings 

 from seed of seedling varieties showed deterioration, some gave consideralile iiromise. 

 The seeds from seedlings proved more fertile than those from old varieties. The 

 seedlings from older varieties generally showed a marked tendency to variation, 

 while in those from seedHng varieties this tendency was not so obvious and many of 

 them came fairly true to the parent cane. The variation in color, size, and sugar 

 content was greater in the seedlings from striped canes than in those from self-colored 

 canes. 



Experiments with different fertilizers, including lime, were conducted on very heavy 

 clay soils. The supply of nitrogen in the forms of sulphate of ammonia, nitrate of 

 soda, raw guano, and dried blood mainly governed the increase in yield due to the 

 use of fertilizers. When not more than 40 lbs. of nitrogen were applied per acre, 

 sulphate of ammonia and nitrate of soda gave practically the same results, but in gen- 

 eral the author considers the sulphate preferable. Dried blood and raw guano were 

 inferior to each of these forms. In applications furnishing more than 40 lbs. of 

 nitrogen per acre on alluvial soils sulphate of ammonia was the best nitrogenous fer- 

 tilizer. The use of 200 lbs. of sulphate of ammonia or 250 lbs. of nitrate of soda per 

 acre gave better results than heavier dressings. In general, dressings of from 200 to 

 300 lbs. of the sulphate seemed the most profitable applications of nitrogen. 



The yield of plant canes was increased by tlie use of superphosphate of lime applied 

 with nitrogen and potash. The effect of phosphates on rattoon crops was hardly per- 

 ceptible, and the author recommends restricting the use of phosphates to plant canes 

 and manuring rattoon crops with nitrogen only. Thomas slag gave better results than 

 superphosphate of lime. Mineral phosphates ])roved unprofitable. Potash, either in 

 the form of the sulphate or the nitrate, exerted little or no effect. Lime gave largely 

 increased yields which seemed to be due mainly to the mechanical effect on the soil. 



