RESULTS WITH SUGAR BEET 103 



of ammonia is, or is not, beneficial. For the later varieties 

 of potatoes, there is no doubt that sulphate of ammonia may 

 be added with profit to land receiving farmyard manure, if 

 superphosphate and potash are also employed. In experi- 

 ments made in 1897 on 21 farms in Scotland, Northumberland, 

 and Yorkshire, the average return from i cwt. of sulphate of 

 ammonia, added to a dressing of farmyard manure, was 12 

 cwts. of saleable potatoes. Superphosphate and potash salts 

 were used in all cases. When sulphate of ammonia and dung 

 are used for the same crop, the former should first be mixed 

 with the soil with the superphosphate and potash salt, and 

 the dung finally placed in the furrow which is to receive the 

 potatoes. The dung used should have been well rotted. In 

 the case of very heavy land it would probably be best to 

 plough in the dung in the autumn, as a much better tilth 

 would then be obtained in spring. 



SUGAR BEET 



Sulphate of ammonia has been largely employed in Ger- 

 many, Austria, France, and Belgium as a manure for the 

 variety of beetroot from which sugar is manufactured. For 

 manufacturing purposes it is desirable that the sap of the roots 

 should contain as large a proportion of sugar, and as small a 

 proportion of other soluble substances as possible. The 

 larger is the percentage of sugar, the greater is the proportion 

 which can be obtained in a crystallised saleable condition. 

 For this reason some factories refuse to purchase roots con- 

 taining less than 10 per cent, of sugar. Owing to the facts 

 just mentioned, it becomes necessary in the cultivation of 

 sugar-beet to aim at the production of roots of high quality, 

 instead of the production of a heavy crop per acre. 



The richness in sugar which is desired is obtained by cultiva- 

 ting varieties of beet specially selected for this quality ; by grow- 

 ing the roots near to each other, and thus reducing their indi- 

 vidual weight, which should not exceed 2 Ibs. ; and finally by 

 employing only moderate dressings of manure. An average 



