254 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Feb. 29, 182S. 



NEW iJiViiLAND FARMER. 

 BOSTON, FRIDAY, FEB. 29, 1828. 



SUGAR BEET. 



A vegetable •. hich promises to prove useful both 

 for field and gar.;en culture has l:itely been inlro 

 duced into this country, but its properties appear 

 to be but little known. The plant to which we 

 allude is couimonly called the Sugar Beet, and 

 souielimes the Buonaparte licet. This last appel- 

 lation was given to the root in consequence of its 

 having been extensively cultivated in France for 

 thf; purpose of making Sugar, by the direction of 

 Buonaparte. It is a speiies of the same genus 

 with tfie coinmiDi: jranlon beet, [betu vulgaris] but 

 we cannot learn lh:it it is distinguished by botan- 

 ists, by any speciiic- name. Some writers on ag- 

 riculture have confounded the Sugar Beet with 

 the Mangel VVuttzel, — but the planis differ in 

 many essential qualities. The Sugar Beet grows 

 to the same size as tlie Mangel Wurtzel, is of 

 greater specific gravity, or heavier in proportion 

 to its bulk, and is a much sweeter root. If it con- 

 tains nourishment in proportion to its saccharine 

 matter, it will, perhaps, be found a more profitable 

 root for field cultivation than iho Mangel VVurt 

 zel. Further e.vperiments, however are wanting, 

 before the relative value of these roots can be 

 stated with certainty. 



Mr Bartley, Secretary of the Bath Agricultural 

 Society, England, informed Dr Mease that the 

 Wliite Beet or Mangel Wurtzel, [probably mean- 

 ing the Sugar Beet,] is very easily cultivated in a 

 deep mellow soil. He made some trials of this 

 root, from whi^'h it resulted that 16 lbs of the root 

 will pro hue about 1 lb. of concrete sugar, and 

 that tlie maximum crop of an acre of ground 

 might produce, at least, two tons weight of sugar, 

 or forty tons of the root, in drills three feet asun- 

 der, with pl:ints eighteen inch 's distance in the 

 rows. He obtained roots weighing upwards of 

 sixti-en pounds ea^h. 



Mr Margraaf. a famous chemist, made some ex- 

 periments, publi.ihed in 1747, for determining the 

 quality of su(jar contained in various European 

 plants, and found the White or Su 'ar Beet pro- 

 ducer! a much jreater quantity than any of the 

 other plants. Dr Achard of Berlin, first introduc- 

 ed this subject into notice, and recommended that 

 the sugar should be procured by boiling the roots, 

 slu inn them when cold, pressinsr out. filtering or 

 straininir and evaporating tlic juice. Fie observed 

 that crude sugar mieht thusbe produced for about 

 thrde pence a pound. Dr Achard re( kjns three 

 varieties of the beet, but preferred that whicli has 

 the .skin of a reddish colour and the f^csh white. 

 He forbids all tran.splanting ; and one of the reas- 

 ons for the proliihition is, that the lower parts or 

 points of the roots are liable to be thus broken off. 

 which part, h'' sftys, gives more sugar than the 

 upner part. The process pursued by Dr Achard 

 in making suirar from these roots is given in Dr 

 Rees' Cyclopedia, Art. Beta, and is too long to 

 copy here. 



The refuse of the roots, after the sugar is ex- 

 tracted, may, it is said, be used as a substitute for 

 coffee, after a due preparation. And the Domes- 

 tic Encyclopedia stales that this refuse is more 

 profitable for feeding cattle than the roots them- 

 selves. We apprehend that the Sugar Beet may 

 contain too much saccharine matter to be used for 

 the purpose of feeding cattle, without being mi.t- 



ed with other substances, such as hay, cut straw, 

 &c. in a greater proportion than what is necessa 

 ry in feeding with roots which have less sweet- 

 ness. But with a proper mixture of such substan- 

 ces, we have no doubt but sugar beets would fur- 

 nish much more nourishment for cattle, in propor- 

 tion- to their weight than any other vegetable, 

 which our soil and climate wnl afford. On this 

 subject however, we have nothing but conjecture 

 and analogy on which to found our observations. 

 We wish. merely to furnish hints, and state proba- 

 bilities. Experiments, accurately lui'de, and faith- 

 fully recorded, can alone enable agriculturists to 

 determine ecisivelythe precise vjue of this root, 

 as an article of field culture. 



According to a " Table of the quantities of nu- 

 tritive matters afforded by 1000 parts of different 

 vegetable substances," published by Sir Humph- 

 rey Davy, (see Agricultural Chemistry, page 131) 

 the whole quantity of nutritive matter contained 

 in 1000 parts ot the red beet, amounts to l.)l such 

 parts — in the white beet to 13ti — in the parsnip 

 to 99 — the carrot to 98 — the common turnip to 

 42, &c. The white beet is one of the varieties of 

 the sugar beet, and according to the table alluded 

 to contains more than three times me quantity of 

 nutritive matter which is contained in the common 

 or English turnip. The stomachs of cattle, how- 

 ever, may not, perhaps, produce results exactly 

 like what might have been expected from chem 

 leal analysis. Bulk as well as nutritive matter is 

 requisite in food for cattle, in order to give the 

 stomach Us due degree of uistention. It is neces- 

 sary that their bellies should be filled, and nutri- 

 tious matter, in a very concentrated form, might 

 not perhaps, so well answer the purposes of na- 

 ture in tlie growth and fattening of the animals, 

 as would the same matter if diffused through a 

 larger bulk of food. For these reasons we should 

 believe, as before observed, that other substances 

 should be ini.\ed with tiie beets in feeding cattle. 



John Prince, Esq. of Roxbury, Mass. imported 

 some time since, some of the seed of the sugar 

 beet, from Paris, and has left some of it for sale 

 at the office of' the New England Farmer. He 

 has been very careful to prevent its being adulte- 

 rated by mixture with other sorts of beet, iiaving 

 set Itis seed plants at such a distance from the 

 seed plants of other beets, that the farina of each 

 could have no effect in changing or deteriorating 

 the kind. 



iMr Prince's experience in cultr. ating both the 

 Mangel Wurtzel and the Sugar Beet, for a num- 

 ber of years, has induced him to prefer the latter. 

 It is not only sweeter and more nutritive than the 

 Mangel Wurtzel, but may be preserved from de- 

 cay, rotting or deterioration with more facility. — 

 N. E. Farmer, vol. iii. p. ^102 



Although we have heretofore published the sub- 

 stance of ', he above notices, we are induced to re- 

 print them for llie bcnsifit of recent subscribers, 

 and to iiiid that further experience and observa- 

 tions ot' Mr Prince and other cultivators, with re- 

 gard to this root, have confirmed its reputation ; 

 and it is now thought by many, to be the best and 

 most profitable root crop which our soil and cli- 

 mate afi'ord, to reward agricultural industry. 



ECONOMY. 



M. Say, a celebrated French writer on political 

 economy, has the following story: "being in the 

 country, I had an example of one of those small 

 losses which a family is exposed to, through neg- 



ligence. From tliB want of small value the wicket 

 of a barn-yard, [looking to the fields] was often 

 left open ; every one who Aent through drew the 

 door to, but having no means to fasten it,it remain- 

 ed flapping ; the poultry escaped, and ivere lost. 

 One day a fine pig "Ot out and ran into the wood, 

 and immediately all the world was alter it ; the 

 gardener — the cook — the dairy maid, all ran to 

 rec-over the swine. The gardener got sight of 

 <liim first, and jumping over a ditch to slop him, he 

 sprained his ancle, and was confined a fortnight 

 to 'he house. The rook on her return, found all 

 the linen she had left to dry by the fire, burned ; 

 and the dairy maid having riin oflf before she tied 

 up the cows, one of them broke the leg of a colt 

 in the stable. The gardener's lost time was 

 worth twenty crowns, valuing his pain at nothing; 

 the linen burned, and ttie cloth spoiled, were 

 worth as much more. Here is a loss of forty 

 crowns, and much piin. trouble, vexation, and in- 

 convenience, for the want of a latch, which would 

 i not cost three pence ; ami this loss, through care- 

 less neglect, falls on a family little able to sup- 

 port it." 



L,UCEkT<iE. 



This plant may be sown from the beginning of 

 Apiil to the end of May, but the best time, if the 

 weather be dry, IS in May. J'he usual allowance 

 for sowing is about '20 lbs. to an acre To make 

 hay it should be mowed as soon as the bloom ap- 

 pears, or rather sooner: it must not be spread like 

 common grass, but lie in the swaih like clover, 

 and turned in the same manner, or the leaves 

 which are most nutritive will drop off. The hay 

 is good for all sorts of cattle; and when horses 

 are fed with it they hhould not have their full al- 

 lowance of corn ; the Lucerne, in a great measure 

 answers the purpose of both corn and hiiy. It is 

 also the most profitable of any sort of fodder to 

 feed horses with in summer, by mowing and giv- 

 ing it to them green. If the land is good, the 

 produce is incrediiile ; and according to the good- 

 ness and depth of the soil, so will the crops be. — 

 One acre, if it takes well, is supposed to keep 3 

 horses all the year. It purges in spring, and will 

 make any cattle fat in a few days. — Complete En- 

 s-iish Farmer. 



Employment of Bones as Manure. — The Chev- 

 alier Masclet has addressed a letter to M. Mat- 

 I thieu de Dombasle on this subject, stating how 

 much he was struck « ith the advantages of ma- 

 ! nuring with boiies, in a tour he lately made in 

 Scotland. He found them equally effective on 

 sandy and clayey soils, and tliat thei; benefit was 

 ; felt for thirty years. On humid and calcareous 

 ! soils they are of little use ; but on grass lands 

 I they are beneficial. — (Annal. de VAgric, Franc. 

 Xov. 1825.; 



Bees. — Where the buck-wheat, or, more proper- 

 ly, beech-wheat. Polygonum figopyrum, is exten- 

 sively cultivated, there bees collect beautiful wax 

 :ind bad honey ; where th'- sanfoin abounds, there 

 the honey is delicious, but the wax is very diffi- 

 cult to bleach. — (Ann d( I'Agric Franc, t. 81.^ 



American Aloe. — A superb specimen flowered 

 in September last, (IH'-.'.)) in the garden of E. P. 

 Bastard, Esq. M. P. at Kitley, upwards of 2000 

 flowers, arranged on whorls of horizontal branch- 

 es, so as to resemble an immense candelabra. — 

 The plant is 110 years old, and is known to have 

 been in the Kitley gardens upwards of a century. 



