SUGAR BEETS: PREVENTABLE LOSSES IIST CULTURE. 3 



of 1911 and 1912, all of which seasons were favorable in that no 

 unusual conditions arose, such as outbreaks of disease or invasions of 

 insect pests; in other words, they might be called normal seasons. 



Care was taken to select plats on groups of farms having similar 

 soil conditions and where identical methods were employed. Cli- 

 matic factors within each group were identical, since each group was 

 located within a very restricted territory. Notes were made on the 

 condition and preparation of the soil, of the dates of sowing, and of 

 the various operations throughout the season. The farmers whose 

 plats were under observation were not informed of the nature of the 

 studies, but were left to carry on their operations in the accustomed 

 manner. 



Primarily, then, this is an attempt to reveal the actual conditions 

 of commercial beet fields as they may be found in any average season 

 in well-established beet districts and to ascertain whether any corre- 

 lation exists between these conditions and the respective yields. 



VARIATION IN STAND. 



At an early stage of these observations a variation in the number 

 of plants to the acre was discovered in the fields mentioned. This 

 was quite as remarkable as the variation in yield. Furthermore, it 

 became apparent that in the course of the season the percentage of 

 stand progressively decreased to a surprising extent. The periods 

 during which further losses in stand occurred indicated very clearly 

 the chief factors concerned. 



THREE TYPES OF SOIL STUDIED. 



To discover the conditions prevailing on farms located on the prin- 

 cipal types of soil, plats were selected on farms possessing in turn 

 the following types: (1) Deep, sandy loam, well manured and in 

 excellent tilth, where the farmers are accustomed to truck crops; (2) 

 very light sandy loam, generally well manured and in good tilth, 

 where intensive culture is practiced to some extent; and (3) heavy 

 black loam, moderately well manured and in fair tilth, where general 

 field crops are prevalent and much of the work is done by contract. 



OBSERVATIONS IN 1910. 



During the season of 1910 observations were made only in fields of 

 heavy black loam, and no counts of the germination and thinning 

 stands were taken, the data presented being based upon the condition 

 of the harvest stands, accompanied by general notes during the 

 season. These data are presented in Table II. 



The small percentage of the harvest stands is startling. The major 

 portion of this loss was due to careless spacing and thinning. The 

 work was done by contract labor, with practically no supervision. 



