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ingly alluring. The experiment spread tlirougli Europe, 

 with many a failure, many a lesson gained through the loss 

 of enormous fortunes invested; now taxed, now protected 

 by the Governments, with constant improvements in culti- 

 vation and machinery, until at the present day nearly one- 

 third of the cane sugar used by the civilized world is ob- 

 tained from beets. At first the percentage of erystalizable 

 sugar in the juice of the beets was low, and only with im- 

 proved means of cultivation, the results of many experi- 

 ments, did the French and German agriculturists learn to 

 produce a uniform average of 12 per cent, or over. 



The beet is a natural growth in several localities, abound- 

 ing in a wild state on the Mediterranean coast. The present 

 varieties of sugar beet are the result of cultivation and hy- 

 bridization. 



Before speaking of the results of our experiments in this 

 country to raise the beet profitably, I have deemed it best 

 to present to our farmers a synopsis of the results obtained 

 by the European experimenters, and which show what treat- 

 ment the beet requires from the cultivator to give uniformly 

 good results. This information is clearly and concisely 

 stated in Dr. Stammer's " Lehrbuch der Zuckerindustrie," 

 and I beg to be allowed to give a somewhat free translation 

 of the valuable chapter on the 



CULTIVATION OF THE BEET. 



1. " The Soil. — Although neither by chemical analysis nor 

 by examination of the physical properties, can we tell in 

 every case that a certain soil will or will not grow the beet 

 successfully, yet experience has shown that, in general, 

 successful culture requires a soil loose ; deep, rather more rich 

 in humus; more loamy and limey than sandy ; with porous sub- 

 soil, and a warm., sunny (xjyosure. Of course not dejicie7it in 

 any of the necessary ingredients of plant food, which may 



