Harvesting 157 
SILOING (PLATE XVII) 
In many places where the land freezes, it is necessary to 
remove the beets from the ground several weeks before 
they can be sliced by the factories. This means that 
they must be stored during this time. In California and 
other warm sections, the beets cannot be dug many days 
before they are run through the mill or they will decay; 
but under these conditions there is no danger of the beets 
being frozen in the ground, and they are not dug until 
they can be used. In storing beets, care must be taken to 
prevent heating, evaporation, and alternate freezing and 
thawing. This means that the piles must be so built 
that ventilation is possible without the evils resulting 
from open exposure. These conditions are met differ- 
ently under different conditions, depending on the length 
of time the beets are to be stored, the temperature, and 
the quantity of beets to be handled. A high temperature 
is the greatest enemy to stored beets. 
In Colorado, Idaho, and Utah, the beets that cannot be 
handled in the bins at the factories are stored in large 
flat-topped piles several feet deep. These are carefully 
watched, and if any begin to spoil the pile is opened where 
the heating begins. In some places beets are stored on 
the individual farms. This is usually done in covered 
ricks similar to those described in Chapter XV. In these 
piles, as in the larger ones, the main things to guard against 
are heating and freezing. Provision must always be made 
for ventilation. Heat is much more likely than cold to 
cause loss. 
