Deterioration Sugar Beets Due to Nitrates 165 
have been both good and bad. Further, that when insect injuries are 
the cause of a deteriorated crop the fact is patent and the same is 
true with fungi and bacteria. Neither one nor all of these causes 
have been shown to have brought about the deterioration of which 
we write. Our thesis is that the cause hereof is a soil condition 
which permits too generous a supply of nitric nitrogen throughout 
the season which in the first place prolongs the period of vegetation 
and delays maturation to such an extent that the beets are harvested 
in an immature condition and of poor quality. The tops are unduly 
large, the beets white and watery, of poor keeping qualities and yield 
juices which require heavy liming, boil badly and produce a great 
deal of molasses. 
It has been shown by experiments that nitrates applied to beets 
at the rate of 528 pounds per acre affects the quality of the beet 
prejudiciously. A few investigators claim that the application of 
nitrates in three portions and in smaller quantities improve the qual¬ 
ity. Our question is, what is the effect of larger quantities, and not 
whether some may be of benefit? Another consideration is in re¬ 
gard to the time when the nitrates become available to the crop. 
That nitrates applied at the time of seeding or during the early de¬ 
velopment of the plant may be beneficial, is abundantly established, 
while the same amount applied later might be injurious. It is shown 
in Bulletin 155 that many of our cultivated soils, such as had been 
planted to beets contained in samples taken, 1-15 Oct. nitric nitrogen 
corresponding to larger amounts of sodic nitrate than 528 pounds 
in the surface six inches of soil. The maximum found in October 
corresponded to 1,902 pounds of sodic nitrate in the surface six 
inches. In another set of samples taken in January we found the 
maximum of 1,680 pounds in the top six inches. We further found 
in October that the fallow spots in a beet field contained very 
large amounts, from 10 to 30 times as much as the land in the rows 
or between the rows, the maximum found was 1,407 pounds in the 
top two inches. These are quantities which would have been very 
prejudicial had they been available to the beets during the months of 
Tune, July and August. It is not asserted that the beets growing in 
other portions of these same rows had at their disposal during the 
growing season so large an amount of nitrates, but that it was possi¬ 
ble for them to have had. The beets in this field had very large tops, 
the roots were small, the sugar content was low and the beets did not 
ripen during the season. The tops were killed by being frozen on 
7 Nov., on which date they were entirely green and showed no signs 
of ripening. 
Occasional mention is made of the deleterious effects of 
nitrates upon beets, but the statement seems to have been based upon 
general opinions or factory practice. Up to the time this study was 
