6 BULLETIN 199, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 
THE DRYING GF BEETS PULLED, TOPPED, THROWN INTO LARGE PDLES, AND LEFT FOR 
SEVERAL DAYS. 
On October 14, 1912, a plat of sugar beets was dug with a special 
beet plow. As rapidly as possible the beets were pulled and topped, 
care being taken to shake off the adhering soil. About 1,00 pounds 
of the beets were then thoroughly rinsed with cold water to wash 
off the remaining soil. They were then spread out on a lawn until 
their surfaces were dry and again weighed to ascertain the -tare. 
The topped beets were at once weighed and piled in two piles of 
about 500 pounds each and left uncovered in the open field. The 
mean temperature during the experiment was 47° F. (See fig. 1.) 
Fig. 3. — A pile of sugar beets covered with beet tops to prevent evaporation and a similar pile left 
uncovered. About 500 pounds of beets are in each pile. (See Table VI.) 
They were weighed at intervals, as shown in Table VI. The beets of 
experiment No. 390 were thrown into two large piles, just as in exper- 
iment No. 389, but as soon as piled they were covered with beet tops. 
Both conditions are shown in figure 3. 
Table VI. — The drying of beets pulled, topped, and thrown into large piles, open and 
covered. 
Time of 
weighing. 
Expo- 
sure. 
Experiment No. 389; 
left uncovered. 
piles 
Experiment No. 390; piles 
covered with beet tops. 
Series and date. 
Weight. 
Loss. 
Weight. 
Loss. 
Pounds. 
Per cent. 
Pounds. 
Per cent. 
Series 1: 
October 14 
2.30 p.m. 
...do 
...do 
...do 
Hours. 
Pounds. 
496. 25 
478. 50 
456. 00 
421.50 
Pounds. 
508. 25 
505.50 
501.00 
487.00 
458. 75 
455.50 
451.25 
436.50 
October 15 
October 16 
October 19 
24 
48 
120 
17.75 
22.50 
34.50 
3.59 
4.53 
6.94 
2.75 
4.50 
14.00 
0.54 
.885 
2.775 
74.75 
15.06 
21.25 ' 4.180 
486.25 
475.50 
■459. 75 
417.50 
Series 2: 
October 15 
October 16 
October 19 
...do 
...do 
...do 
24 
48 
120 
10.75 
15. 75 
42.25 
2.21 
3.24 
8.69 

3.25 .71 
4.25 .93 
14. 75 3. 21 
Total, 5 days. . . 
6S. 75 
14.14 
22. 25 4. 85 
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