112 



The World's Commercial Products 







- .dm m 



33« 



By permission of the Canadian Government 



AN AVENUE OF MANITOBA MAPLE TREES, 



EXPERIMENTAL FARM, BRANDON 



Molasses 

 Beet-sugar rnolasses are of but little value in their original form. As in the case of raw 

 beet-sugar the impurities of the beet are unpleasant and beet molasses cannot be used as cane 

 molasses can, as an "article for confectionery purposes. Beet molasses, however, by undergoing 

 fermentation and subsequent distillation, give rise to alcohol, and on the continent of Europe 

 this is a most important by-product, affording a large supply of alcohol for industrial purposes. 



Improvement of the Sugar-Beet 



The improvement of the beetroot as a sugar-producing plant is inseparably associated with 

 the name of Vilmorin, the pioneer work having been accomplished by the house of Vilmorin, 

 of Paris. The original races of beet only contained some six per cent, of crystallisable sugar or 

 sucrose. Vilmorin cultivated races of beet in which he increased the sugar contents about eighteen 

 per cent. To attain this the plants were set much closer together and much smaller roots 

 resulted, the total yield of sugar per acre being greater owing to their superior richness in sugar. 



The mode of operation is very interesting, and presents one of the best cases the world 

 affords of the improvement of a commercial plant. Passing over the earlier rougher methods, 

 a way was found by which pieces were tested of actual roots which in the following year were 

 set to grow again and produce seed. A field of beetroots is carefully gone over, and plants 

 selected which are of good shape, size, and possessed of other desirable characters. From 

 each of these a small piece is removed with an instrument — not unlike the little scoops used 

 in tasting cheeses. The juice from each little piece is separately expressed, its quantity 

 ascertained, and also the percentage of sugar it contains. The roots are in no way injured 

 and the individual roots with the highest sugar contents after being carefully stored for the 

 winter are planted out and allowed to flower and fruit. The seeds from these selected plants 

 are then employed to raise future crops. Work on these lines is actively pursued to-day in 

 Europe and the United States. 



