THE BEET-SUGAR INDUSTRY IN THE UNITED STATES. 37 



is plowed consists in harrowing, preferably with a spike-tooth har- 

 row or other form of this implement, which simply stirs the sur- 

 face of the ground and makes a moderately fine mulch. It is a 

 more or less common practice to harrow at the end of each half day 

 or, at the latest, at the end of each day, the ground just plowed. 

 This is a practice to be especially recommended in cases of spring 

 plowing, since it has a tendency to hold the moisture in the soil, 

 thereby leaving it in good condition to form a satisfactory seed bed. 

 In case of fall or winter plowing it is better to leave the ground 

 rough, in order that it may catch or hold the winter snows and rains. 



The scraper and float. — In the irrigated sections leveling is some- 

 times necessary in order to put the ground in condition to be irri- 

 gated. As pointed out on page 21, ground which is not level or 

 nearly so can not be satisfactorily irrigated. This is especially 

 true with a crop like sugar. beets, which must be irrigated by the 

 furrow method. If the ground is leveled before the plowing is 

 done, the Fresno scraper is commonly used. If the leveling is 

 left until after the ground is plowed, an implement called a float 

 is frequently used; this consists of two planks placed on edge 

 and so framed together, about 6 or 8 feet apart, that they can be 

 dragged sideways over the field, as shown in Plate V, figure 2. This 

 has the advantage of not only leveling the ground, but it tends to 

 break up the small clods and puts the ground in good condition for 

 further preparation of the seed bed. Frequently the Fresno scraper 

 is used before plowing if the surface is very uneven, and the float is 

 used after plowing in the same field. The two operations are quite 

 distinct; the former is usually called scraping and the latter level- 

 ing. The scraping is necessary only when inequalities in the surface 

 of the field are very marked. The time and labor spent in leveling 

 will be repaid in the production of sugar beets, both from the stand- 

 point of yield and from that of labor saved in irrigating. 



The roller. — Another implement of considerable importance in 

 sugar-beet growing is the roller. There are two types of this imple- 

 ment, as shown in Plate II, figures 1 and 2, namely, the smooth roller 

 and the so-called corrugated roller. The latter is desirable in those 

 localities where there are high winds, since the corrugations tend to 

 prevent the soil from shifting under the influence of the wind. The 

 chief advantage of the roller is its surface-packing effect. If the 

 root bed is inclined to be loose the subsurface packer should be used 

 immediately after plowing. As previously neted, the seed bed for 

 sugar beets should be decidedly firm, for two reasons at least. The 

 firmness of the seed bed tends to hold the moisture, and at the same 

 time it prevents the sinking of the drill wheels, in which case the 

 seed is frequently planted too deep. The seed bed that is unevenly 



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