Production of Sugar-Beet Seed * 225 
placing the beets in the silo it is a good plan to remove the 
tops, leaving enough of the crown and tops to permit 
growth to begin the next spring. If mother beets are 
allowed to wilt before they are planted, the yield of seed 
is greatly reduced. Likewise, if they are not put into the 
silos fresh, the keeping quality is not so good. Beets to 
be siloed should usually be left in the fields as long as 
possible before digging, keeping in mind the injury that 
may result from frost. 
The methods of siloing vary considerably with the in- 
tensity of the winter cold. In some climates beets live 
over winter in the field and will produce seed without 
being dug and siloed. This is not the case, however, in 
most of the best seed-producing sections. The tempera- 
ture of the beets in the silo should be taken at intervals 
during the winter to serve as a guide to the amount of 
covering needed. 
Planting mother beets. 
The stecklinge can be planted considerably earlier in 
the spring than the best seed, since the old beets are not 
as sensitive to frost as are seedlings. It is probably need- 
less to say that the land should have been plowed deeply. 
Experiments with a number of methods of planting and 
distances between plants have been made and the follow- 
ing method adopted as a result : 
The land is marked each way about thirty inches apart 
and a beet dropped at each crossing of the marks. The 
best distance apart will, of course, depend on conditions. 
A long spade is pushed into the ground and the beet put 
in behind or in front of the spade when it is moved for- 
Q 
