Sugar-Beet Cultivaiion in Austria. 
349 
Storage of Roots. 
"When beets are to be preserved for manufacture during tbe 
winter months, or for the production of seed, special precau- 
tions have to be taken to preserve them from wet and frost. It 
is desirable that they should be left on the ground for a short 
time before they are clamped, in order that they may lose as 
much of their moisture as possible. The roots, however, should 
not be left long exposed to the air, and never to the sun. It is 
well, therefore, to cover temporarily the roots with their tops, 
in the field, before clamping. In storing, special care should be 
taken to prevent germination and throwing out fresh tops. 
As light, heat, and moisture greatly favour germination, which 
is necessarily attended with loss of sugar, the roots should be 
specially guarded against these injurious influences. 
The most effectual plan to preserve the roots in good condi- 
tion is to select a dry and suitable locality, to pile the roots in 
pyramidal clamps, about six feet broad at their base, and seven 
feet high, and to cover the clamps immediately with dry earth. 
At first the roots should be covered but slightly, in order that 
the moisture may readily evaporate, and subsequently, when 
frost sets in, another layer of earth, not exceeding one foot in 
thickness, may be placed on the clamps. If at once a thick layer 
of earth is placed upon the roots, the moisture which they throw 
ofi^ cannot fi-eely escape, and in consequence they are apt to 
heat and to suffer changes which diminish the amount of 
crystallisable sugar wliich they contain. 
The best temperature for preserving the roots in the fresh 
state is from 35° to 40° Fahr., and the roots should be so 
arranged in storage that they are not more than three feet 
from an air-passage,' in order to secure constant and regular 
renewal of the air to carry off noxious gases and superfluous 
moisture, and to regulate the temperature — which has always a 
tendency to rise. The trenches must also be thoroughly drained, 
so that any water that may collect in the bottom may run off. 
Manufacture of Sugae. 
The concern of the agriculturist proper in the manufacture 
of sugar from beet is limited to the beginning, viz., the growth 
of the root itself, and to the end, viz., the feeding of live stock 
with the residual pulp. The actual process of the making of 
' Most factories use these air-passages, but Herr Skntezky tells me he pre- 
fers to do without them : and certaiily at Wischau his beets are verj well 
preserved, 
