THE BEET-SUGAR INDUSTRY IN" 1920. 41 



allowed, to handle and the price per acre that he will receive for the 

 labor. Labor problems are more fully treated on pages 42 to 44. 



BEET BY-PRODUCTS AND LIVE STOCK. 



Live stock constitutes an important factor in the success of beet 

 growing from two standpoints : (1) The utilization of beet tops and 

 pulp and (2) the production of stable or barnyard manure. 



Kind of live stock to feed. — Sugar-beet tops and pulp are good feed 

 for all kinds of live stock, including chickens, hogs, sheep, cattle, and, 

 to some extent, horses. Generally the tops and pulp are fed to sheep 

 and cattle. There are several methods by which the beet tops may 

 be utilized for feed. They may be pastured off, a process which con- 

 sists in turning the live stock into the. beet field after the beets have 

 been harvested and the roots removed, as shoAvn in Plate X, figure 1. 

 The tops are left scattered over the ground, and this method of 

 feeding results in the ground being more or less trampled. Sheep 

 especially are inclined to travel more generally in paths, thereby 

 trampling the ground unevenly. In no case should the pasturing 

 of the tops be permitted when the ground is wet, since the ground 

 itself would be seriously injured by trampling in that condition and 

 many of the tops would be wasted by being trampled into the 

 ground. While live stock thrives on beet tops and pulp, other feed 

 must be used in finishing the animals for the market. Beet tops, 

 especially the crowns, contain considerable mineral matter which is 

 beneficial to live stock, but it should not be fed in too large quantities. 



The tops are sometimes allowed to cure partly and are then 

 gathered into piles, hauled to the feed yard, and fed in racks, one 

 form of which is shown in Plate X, figure 2. This is a much more 

 economical method of utilizing the tops, but it involves the additional 

 expense of gathering and hauling. The tops may also be used as 

 ensilage. When chopped with straw, cornstalks, or other roughage 

 excellent silage is produced. Both the tops and the pulp are excellent 

 for dairy cows, since they act as a tonic upon the animals as well 

 as a food and increase the flow of milk. Pulp is used either fresh 

 or dried. It is dried artificially, either by itself or in combination 

 with molasses. When dried by itself it contains the same substances 

 as when fresh; when dried with molasses it, of course, contains the 

 added sugar and mineral matter. The object in drying the pulp is 

 to make it easier to handle. About 80 per cent of the weight is lost 

 in drying and when dried it can be shipped long distances. It should 

 be soaked for several hours before it is fed to stock. 



Number of live stock to keep.— It is apparent that there should 

 be a suitable ratio between the number of live stock and the available 

 tops, pulp, and other feed on the farm. As stated above, animals 



