PREPAKIXG SEED BEFORE SOWINU. 193 



ruan', when most farming hands have finished at 

 the factory. 



However, there is much to be said against the 

 method, unless it be in cases of seed production, and 

 then the advantages are very numerous. As during 

 the transplanting, the tip end of the beet is left in the 

 ground, the chances are, as the roots develop in their 

 new environment, they will be forked. Another fact 

 to be considered is, that transplanted beets are very 

 hairy in their nature, which, in the end, means expan- 

 sion without depth, and decreased sugar percentage. 



What appears, to us, to be the principal role in 

 this question of transplanting, is the possibility, when 

 growing beets in the regular way, of filling open 

 spaces, and many farmers place one-tenth of their 

 entire field with beets which are to be subsequently 

 used for this special purpose. On the other hand, many 

 claim that this is unnecessary, for during the operation 

 of thinning out, there are always more beets left over 

 than are possible to utilize. This would be a mistake, 

 for the thinning operation should be done rapidly. 



The hand sowing, at marked places on the field, 

 in which are placed several seed, is not to be recom- 

 mended, on account of expense. It has been shown 

 that machine-sown seed always give better results 

 than hand methods, it being more regular in its work- 

 ing; the depth, etc., being more constant. The seed 

 drills, which work at regular distances, and by clusters, 

 are only in a measure to be recommended. The 

 objection to them is, that if the lines are eighteen 

 inches apart, and spacing of beets in lines ten inches, 

 if one of these clusters is attacked by insects, there 

 remains a space of twenty inches on the lin^, which 

 would mean very large beets, and small sugar percent- 

 age. Upon general principles, it is very doubtful if the 

 cluster method of sowing is ever to be commended; 

 for the thinning-out that follows necessarily weakens 



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