4 



BULLETIN 203, U. S. DEPARTMENT OP AGRICULTURE. 



beets, the galls are greatly reduced in number after one year in grain 

 and practically eliminated after two years. It is true that when galls 

 are present in a field of beets they are frequently more numerous 

 near the ends of the rows, where the greatest amount of mechanical 

 injury is produced by the horses and cultivator in turning. (See 

 PL II, E and F.) However, adjacent fields and even parts of the 

 same field not previously in beets, but in which the beets at the time 

 of the observation were subjected to the same mechanical injuries, 

 were free from galls (PL II, D), regardless of the fact that the soil, 

 climatic conditions, and cultural methods were the same. While 

 certain plant galls and callus formations may be produced by other 

 agencies, all extensive laboratory, greenhouse, and field studies on the 

 crown-gall of sugar beets lead to the conclusion that in this country 

 the true crown-gall formations of this class are produced by bacteria. 



QUALITY OF BEET GALLS. 



In topping beets from which sugar is to be obtained, it is customary 

 to cut off the, crowns at the line of the lowest leaf scar. The reason 

 for rejecting the crowns, as generally known, depends on the fact 

 that as a rule they contain a high percentage of salts, which tend to 

 prevent the sugar from crystallizing in the mill. In the process of 

 topping the beets it frequently happens that a part or all of the galls 

 that occur on the beets are so located that they are left on the root 

 (PL I, F to K) and are, therefore, put through the mill. In order to 

 find out whether or not the galls might affect injuriously the juices 

 in the mill, a series of tests was made to determine the quality of the 

 galls as compared with the beet crowns and roots. The results of 

 these tests are given in Table I, the analytical work for this and the 

 succeeding table having been performed at the Garden City, Kans., 

 laboratory by Mr. C. A. Hauser. 



Table I. — Sugar tests of beets affected with crown-gall. 



Part of beet tested. 



Average 

 weight of 

 part tested. 



Solids in 

 juice. 



Sugar in 

 juice. 



Coefficient 

 of purity. 



Sugar in 

 part tested. 



Experiment 1: 



Galls 



Ounces. 

 3.2 

 13.6 

 24.0 



4.0 

 11.2 

 25.6 



3.2 

 13.6 

 29.8 



5.6 

 18.4 

 32.8 



8.0 

 18.4 

 44.8 



Per cent. 

 15.32 

 14.10 

 14.30 



15.60 

 12.70 

 14.10 



16.00 

 15.40 

 15.00 



15.30 

 13.10 

 13.10 



16.60 

 14.60 

 14.10 



Per cent. 

 9.00 

 10.10 

 11.00 



8.10 

 8.20 

 11.00 



9.20 

 10.80 

 11.40 



7.80 

 9.00 

 10.10 



9.10 

 9.90 

 10.50 



Per cent. 

 58.74 

 71.63 

 76.92 



51.92 



64.56 

 78.01 



57.50 

 70.20 

 76.00 



50.98 

 68.70 

 77.09 



54.81 

 67.80 

 74.46 



Per cent. 

 5.00 





8.90 





10.00 



Experiment 2: 



Galls 



4.60 





7.50 





10.20 



Experiment 3: 



Galls 



7.10 





10.20 





10.70 



Experiment 4: 



Galls : 



7.00 





8.40 





10.00 



Experiment 5: 



Galls 



5.90 





8.50 





9.00 



