Vol. LIX. No. 2653. NEW YORK, DECEMBER 1, 1900. 
A NEW YORK SUGAR-BEET FARM. 
BEETS SUPERSEDE SILO AND CABBAGE. 
How the Crop is Harvested. 
A GOOD BARN AND SILO.—Calling recently upon 
an old iriend, Mr. T. B. Rogers, I had the pleasure 
of learning much about the methods practiced on a 
farm situated along the banks of the Susquehanna 
River, near Binghamton, N. Y. A brother, Mr. J. B. 
Rogers, very kindly showed me about the farm, anu 
pointed out the things that would most interest one 
in pursuit of information. The first thing that natur¬ 
ally attracts the eye of the visitor, as ne comes up 
the road, is the large new barn. This barn was built 
about two years ago, upon the site, and mostly after 
the pattern of the one that was burned shortly before. 
The main building is 36x175 feet. The first addition 
in front, used for wagons, principally, is 30x48 feet. 
An open shed to the left is 16x96 feet, and an addition 
to the right is 31x75 feet. This contains a silo 30x30 
feet inside, and 22 feet deep 
It goes without saying that 
so large a silo was intended 
for a farm where a large 
stock is kept. The farm con¬ 
sists of about 120 acres of 
tillable land besides some 
woodland, and on it have 
been kept from 90 to 100 
cows the year through, and 
what is more, hay was sold 
off the farm at the same 
time. Neighbors laughed at 
him, Mr. Rogers says, when 
he commenced enlarging his 
former barn, telling him he 
could never get enough to fill 
it. But the owner was one 
of the first in the vicinity to 
see the advantage and to 
adopt the silo, and to use si¬ 
lage as the chief food for 
cows. From 60 to 70 acres of 
silage corn were put in and 
harvested. The soil is a loam 
mostly free from stones, and 
a strong soil, capable of pro¬ 
ducing enormous crops of 
corn. These corn crops were 
usually followed by oats, 
which in turn gave place to 
clover. A lot was pointed 
out to me containing by act 
ual measurement five acres 
and 30 square rods, where 20 
loads of clover hay were 
once taken off. Several loads 
were weighed from which it was possible to make a 
close estimate of the amount, and a very conservative 
estimate places it at 25 tons, as it was taken from 
the field. No one will be likely to doubt that this 
method of farming was profitable, provided, of course, 
that the cows kept were of the kind that would re¬ 
spond generously in the milk pail, to generous keep¬ 
ing. But for all that the system here outlined has 
been abandoned; the silo is empty, and practically no 
corn is grown. The intensive farming tor dairy pur¬ 
poses was hard, confining labor, both for the overseer 
and the help. A half dozen men were needed by the 
month the year through, and more or less extra help 
must be employed. Besides, this tarm is situated par¬ 
ticularly well for other farming industries, and dairy¬ 
ing was given up, and in its place cabbage growing 
was undertaken. Scarcely a cow can be found on the 
farm. 
FROM CABBAGE TO BEETS.—The cabbage busi¬ 
ness has been found to be the most profitable, as the 
farm is situated near several markets that are excel¬ 
lent when there is any market for cabbage. Just at 
the present time there are no cabbage grown, as sugar 
beet is taking all the attention, there being 45 acres 
of beets grown this season. The market for these is 
sure, at least for the present, and if anything hap¬ 
pens to make another change desirable, there is the 
cabbage cellar and the silo all in readiness for use. It 
requires no particular shrewdness to see that capital 
is needed for any of these lines of business, and that 
pluck and energy and a level head are needed to carry 
them to a successful ending. But those are the quali¬ 
ties needed for any business, particularly when han¬ 
dled on an extensive scale. I must not forget to men¬ 
tion that last Fall 200 young cattle were purchased, 
and fed through the Winter on nothing but beet pulp 
and a refuse molasses, one quart per day, the sugar 
factory being near by. The stock did so well and 
fattened so nicely that it is proposed to buy dry cows 
this Fall and feed them in the same way. The pulp 
costs $1 per ton at the factory. It is perhaps as near¬ 
ly comparable to silage as anything, though a recent 
bulletin shows that it contains only about 40 per cent 
as much of solids as silage. It is believed to be good 
feed for those who can get it without too much ex¬ 
pense. 
GROWING A NEW CROP.—Three years is not a 
long time in which to find out very much about grow¬ 
ing a new crop. Of course sugar beets nave been 
grown in Germany for years, and to some extent in 
the West for a somewhat shorter period, but our far¬ 
mers have no chance to visit Germany, and few can 
visit the beet-growing region of the West. I think it 
little short of remarkable, therefore, that so much 
has been learned in so short a time. An illustration 
of this I found on the farm of Mr. Rogers, when the 
cost of harvesting the beets was reduced from $15 an 
acre th first year (1898) to $9.92 last season. Not a 
small part of this saving was effected in the manner 
of removing the tops from the beets. Directions that 
had been given were to pull the beets and throw them 
in piles; then put the men to work on benches 
placed by the side of the piles, when they pick up the 
beets, lay them on the benches and cut off the tops, 
after which the beets might be thrown into a wagon- 
box or into crates, if more desirable than to throw 
them into other piles. It was found that it took more 
than twice as many men to cut off tops as to pull the 
beets after the “lifter” had been along. Mr. Rogers 
was not satisfied with this condition of affairs, but be¬ 
gan experimenting and using his head. As a result 
four men now do the cutting for six men to pull. 
THE HARVESTING PROCESS.—The way it is done 
is for the man who does the pulling to take two rows 
at a time, pulling from each row with one hand as 
he stands between the rows, they being 18 to 20 inches 
apart. The points of the beets are then laid together 
between the rows as shown in Fig. 307, leaving the 
tops outside laid so that the crowns are in a straight 
line. Mr. Rogers says that he has to be very par¬ 
ticular to impress upon the 
men the importance of the 
straight line, as otherwise 
they are likely to become 
careless about it, and any 
deviation works a hindrance 
to the cutters. The cutters 
now get down on their knees 
and grasping the beets in one 
hand they draw the knife 
right across, thus severing 
the tops with one movement 
of the knife, and with the 
knife still in position the top 
is moved a little to one side. 
This is all the cutters do. If 
there is a left-handed cutter 
two men work side by side, 
otherwise the cutter goes 
down one side and up the 
other. Fig. 307 gives a good 
idea of how the work is 
done. Mr. Rogers finds that 
the cost of cultivating me 
first time is $1 per acre. 
This cultivating is done with 
a two-horse machine, which 
cultivates two rows at a 
time. After this has been 
thoroughly done, men go 
through, and with one stroke 
of the hoe they cut out weeds 
and plants the width of the 
hoe, leaving the best plants. 
Men and boys follow to weed 
and thin out by hand. This 
work, after cultivating, costs 
$5 per acre. Later there must be another weeding 
at a cost of $2 per acre. Mr. Rogers raised about 45 
acres of sugar beets this year. If I understand it cor¬ 
rectly, there was considerable cultivating done with 
the one-horse cultivator besides that already men¬ 
tioned. The cost of harvesting last year was $9.92 per 
acre. The first act in harvesting sugar beets is to use 
the “lifter.” This implement consists of two blades 
of suitable length and width attached to a beam 
above, and is used something like a plow. The blades 
pass each side of the row, and as they are set at a 
slight angle, nearer together at the lower tips than 
above, their passage loosens and slightly raises the 
beets. After this is done it is not difficult for the men 
to walk along and pull the beets, two rows at a time. 
The team in the left of the picture. Fig. 307, is haul¬ 
ing the “lifter.” h. h. l. 
R. N.-Y.—We have our doubts about the success of 
the beet-sugar business in this country, but the beets 
will pay a good profit for stock food alone. 
