8 BULLETIN" 721, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGEICULTUEE. 



tillage. If it is close to the surface aisd of such material that it can 

 not be broken up successfully, the growing of sugar beets suitable 

 for sugar making is impossible. Beets produced under such condi- 

 tions will be short, with a resulting low tonnage, or they will be 

 pushed out of the ground and consequently will be low in sugar and 

 purity. The nature of the hardpan is of considerable importance 

 in this connection. If it is of rock and near the surface little can 

 be done to improve its condition for sugar-beet culture, but if it is 

 simply a close and compact form of soil it may be broken up with a 

 subsoil plow. An extremely hard subsoil is sometimes found in 

 the sugar-beet sections, especially in local areas, and this condition 

 sometimes constitutes a limiting factor in the production of this crop 

 in those areas as a whole or on certain farms or fields, depending 

 upon the location and distribution of the hardpan. If the hardpan 

 is present at a great depth it may result in holding too much mois- 

 ture in the surface soil, thereby rendering the conditions unfavorable 

 for sugar-beet production ; if the hardpan in this case has sufficient 

 slope to carry the water off, the unfavorable condition may be relieved 

 by proper drainage. 



Porous soil. — The reverse of the preceding condition is sometimes 

 found in sugar-beet sections in which the porous subsoil is of such a 

 nature and of such a depth that great difficulty is experienced in 

 keeping the soil supplied with moisture during the growing season. 

 Rain or irrigation water passes rapidly through the subsoil and is 

 soon out -of reach of the growing plant. If the porous subsoil is 

 very deep and extremely porous the ground is unsuited for sugar- 

 beet culture. Frequently something can be done to relieve this con- 

 dition to a limited extent by proper cultivation and by supplying 

 the surface soil with sufficient humus to enable it to retain enough 

 moisture to produce a fair crop. A heavy crop of beets can not be 

 expected on a thin surface soil underlain with an extremely porous 

 subsoil. 



TOPOGRAPHY. 



The unfavorable topography of an area is frequently the limiting 

 factor in the production of sugar beets. Mountainous areas can not 

 be utilized for the development of the beet-sugar industry unless 

 the valleys are sufficiently large to support a mill or are favorably 

 located with reference to an existing mill and composed of sufficient 

 fertile, tillable soil so that beets of proper quality and in sufficient 

 quantity can be produced at a reasonable cost. Many small valleys, 

 especially in the western United States, might be utilized in the 

 growing of sugar beets were it not for the fact that they are too 

 small to support a sugar mill and too far from existing mills to 

 permit the beet roots to be transported at a sufficiently low cost. 



