SOILS FOR SEED I'EODUCTION. 149 



rience has shown that it is not to the seed producer's 

 advantage to attempt the creation of the very elon- 

 gated varieties. They are difficult to properly arrange 

 in silos and their tip ends are most always broken dur- 

 ing harvesting, and if not then, they would be broken 

 when placed in silos. 



At the Laon beet-selecting laboratory, the main 

 object in view is to commence analysis as soon as pos- 

 sible and to have the roots well siloed before the very 

 cold weather. Herewith (Fig. 49) is shown how the 

 piles are made, and the necessary care given to 

 their construction. 



The beets are brought in baskets direct from the 

 laboratory and then piled with necks pointing outward. 

 It is not desirable to make these piles more than three 

 feet high; their section is that of a triangle, and when 

 of the desired height and shape they are covered with 

 earth, and remain during the several months of cold 

 weather until March or April, when planted. The slow 

 method adopted in most selecting laboratories neces- 

 sitates the opening and closing of the silo made upon 

 the field during the entire winter; this practice, as may 

 be imagined, is followed by many complications and 

 poor results; all of which, by Legras's method, is 

 avoided, as the analyses commence in January and 

 finish in February, after the sugar campaign has termi- 

 nated. It must never be forgotten that there are certain 

 precautions to be taken in the laboratory in order to 

 assure the keeping of beets in silos, viz., the hole made 

 by the rasp or sampler should be most carefully filled 

 with clay or charcoal, and the roots handled with care, 

 so as to prevent bruises. The slightest mutilation means 

 organic changes during the several months theyremain 

 covered awaiting planting season. 



Chemical Changes During Second Year's Growth. 



' Do mothers, after seed is harvested, still retain 

 sugar? This question is frequently asked and many 



