The RURAL NEW-YORKER 
237 
The 
Beet as 
[There has been considerable discussion of the plan 
of growing sugar beets on Long Island, and on the light 
soils of Southern New Jersey. Personally we doubt if 
these sections can compete profitably with the dry lands 
of the Western States, but at any rate we should study 
the crop and its possibilities before investing heavily in 
it. The following statement tells what has happened in 
Colorado] : 
HE BIRTH OF AN INDUSTRY.—In the 
latter half of the nineties the writer and a 
few other farmers on the western slope of 
the Colorado raised small patches of sugar 
beets for hog feed. The animals seem to 
like the beets so well that a few were 
boiled as an experiment, and we found that the 
cooked beets, mixed with bran or other mill feed, 
seemed to make the ideal ration, not only for hogs, 
but milk stock as well. As a further experiment the 
writer sent samples of sugar beets to Washington, as 
well as to our agricultural college at Fort Collins, 
for analysis, asking our agricultural chemist for an 
early and complete report. In a short time a report 
point of success, and not until the sugar company 
imported Russians as laborers in beet fields did the 
industry attain a solid foundation. 
AN EASY CROP.—Like other big enterprises, the 
sugar beet crop had its ups and downs. One of the 
main troubles in recent years has been the conten¬ 
tion between the growers and factories, which now 
seems to be settled by compromising, the growers’ 
demands having been finally accepted by the sugar 
companies on a 50-50 basis. As to the culture, beets 
are one of the easiest and surest crops to grow in 
this dry climate. Evei'y conceivable machine to 
lighten the work of the growers has been perfected 
and is in use today. The only and most tedious op¬ 
eration in beet culture, and for which no machine 
has yet been perfected, is the thinning of plants.. 
This work, however, is being done by Mexicans 
Japanese and other imported help for so much ai 
acre, and is therefore no hardship upon the grower;: 
themselves. In addition, the sugar companies art 
takes many are making is to put in too large an acre¬ 
age. This prevents the thinning of the beets at the 
right stage of growth, which gives the young plants 
a setback from which they never fully recover. This 
fact has been demonstrated the past season on a 
farm just across the road from my place. This field 
was thinned a month too late, and though the owner 
had a perfect stand, the crop at digging averaged 
only 11 tons to the acre, and of course he merely 
broke even. To make beet growing a success a large 
yield must be kept in mind, and while the sugar 
companies are advising the growing of medium-size 
roots, experience has shown that beets thinned to 10 
in. in the row yield the best and largest tonnage per 
acre and are also easier handled than smaller roots. 
Instead of the average yield of 12 tons to the acre, 
IS tons should be the average. To our friends in the 
East who intend to grow beets for sugar, I cannot 
offer any encouragement, because the Eastern cli¬ 
mate is not conducive to the necessary sugar content 
A Pair of Youngsters and Their Pet Ply mouth Pocks 
came from Fort Collins giving my beets 23% per 
cent of sugar, including a high per cent of purity. The 
report was shown to the editor of our leading county 
paper, which impressed him to such an extent that 
he at once induced others farmers to send sample 
beets for analysis. Every sample sent, without ex¬ 
ception, showed that the soil and climate were par¬ 
ticularly adapted to sugar beet culture for the manu¬ 
facture of sugar. 
INTERESTING CAPITAL—With the proof of 
analysis in his possession, the editor of the paper 
mentioned went to Denver and laid the matter be- 
for the Chamber of Commerce there. Seeing the pos- 
sibilties of a new industry, the Denver chamber se¬ 
cured some of the best seed obtainable and distribut¬ 
ed the same to farmers in different parts of the State 
for another and more complete test, which was even 
more favorable than the first. The outcome of this 
experiment was the erection of a beet sugar factory 
at Grand Junction. Colo., about 26 years ago. 
EDUCATING THE FARMERS.—Many troubles 
were encountered: the most serious one Avas that the 
native settlers did not understand the culture of 
beets and consequently made a failure of it. Had it 
not been for some Russian-German settlers, who 
made a success of beet growing from the beginning, 
there is no telling what the outcome Avould have 
been. It took years to educate the natives to the 
doing everything possible to aid the growers; first, 
by arranging for the necessary help; second, by 
erecting dumps at all convenient points on the rail¬ 
road to facilitate the handling of the crop, and third, 
by offering financial assistance to any deserving 
grower or new beginner. 
EFFECT ON SOIL.—The sugar beet crop is called 
the “ground cleaner,” as it leaves the soil clean and 
in the best possible condition for other crops; 60 
bushels of AA’heat and 100 bushels of corn are on rec¬ 
ord as having been grown on land following sugar 
beets. The fertility of the soil is not drawn upon to 
the extent other crops do, because the beets draw 
their sugar from the air and sunshine, which ac¬ 
counts for their high saccharine content when grown 
in the arid States. The tops, when left to decay on 
the land, furnish in themselves the equivalent of a 
light dressing of barnyard manure. After summing 
up the many good points attached to beet culture, it 
cannot be denied that they have been to a great ex¬ 
tent responsible for the prosperity of the sugar beet 
States, and their culture is still in its infancy. I 
know of farmers who, after denouncing the crop, 
and turning their attention to others, came back to 
the growing of beets, and Avithout exception all are 
prospering. It is a crop that is sold when the seed 
is planted, which is a point to be considered. 
REQUISITES FOR SUCCESS.—One of the mis- 
in beets in order to encourage the building of fac¬ 
tories. There are, however, some beet sugar fac¬ 
tories in Michigan, but as I have seen no report from 
them, I cannot say Avhether they are successful or 
not. At the present price of sugar it offers encour- 
.agement to many farmers to go into sugar beet cul¬ 
ture, and the acreage here in the West bids fair to 
be doubled this year. It might interest your read¬ 
ers to state that Colorado sugar factories have 
turned out from last year’s beets 500,000,000 lbs. of 
granulated sugar, and two of the 18 factories did not 
open at all. Out of this mountain of sweetness the 
growers received .$16,000,000. One of the sights dur¬ 
ing the big exposition in 1926 will be a model sugar 
beet farm near Denver, including the finest beet 
sugar factory in the Avorld. o w. huber. 
Quality in Connecticut Apples 
F OR years the Eastern fruit grower lias been 
broadcasting the saying that Eastern-grown ap¬ 
ples were superior in quality to those grown by his 
Western competitor. Most people are from Missouri, 
although they may not admit it. and for that reason 
the purchasing public lias been waiting to be 
“shown,” lint in the meantime lias continued to buy 
Western apples for dessert purposes; that is. to eat 
out of hand in the office, on the train, or to take 
