PRACTICAL PAPERS—SUGAR-BEET AND BEET SUGAR. 245 
way, M. Villenorman has obtained plants which contain four¬ 
teen or fifteen per cent, of sugar. The richness in sugar is or¬ 
dinarily in inverse ratio to the size of the beet, and in direct 
ratio to the density. 
Grant considers the white Silesian variety to unite the most 
of the desirable qualities for manufacturers. He says : 
“ For the use of sugar manufacturers the kind of beet that can be cultivat¬ 
ed with the most advantage is that which is richest in sugar and contains the 
smallest amount of alkaline salts. It is distinguished by the following 
characteristics : 
“ First. Its roots must have neither the form of a carrot, nor of a tuber, 
but are shaped more like a ^Bartlett pear. It must be long and slender, 
gradually tapering and free from large lateral roots. 
“ Second. It must not grow above the surface of the soil. 
“ Third. It must have a smooth white surface, and the flesh be white and 
hard 
“ Fourth. Its size must not be too large, and its weight not exceeding five to 
eight pounds. 
“The white Silesian beet, which is the one in general cultivation for man¬ 
ufacturers, unites most of these qualities; and of other kinds those are most 
preferred whose foliage is not upright, but broad, spreading, and lying upon 
the surface of the ground. The roots of beets possessing this peculiarity 
grow entirely beneath the surface.” 
SOILS ADAPTED TO THE CULTIVATION OF THE BEET. 
The most productive soils are those composed of clay and 
sand, being at the same time somewhat calcareous, deep and 
easily ploughed. Sandy soils which contain clay and carbonate 
of lime also yield good crops, if they do not suffer from pro¬ 
longed drought. On soils almost entirely argillaceous or cal¬ 
careous the beet root attains but moderate size, and is liable to 
suffer from drought as well as from wet. Argillaceous soils, in 
order to be fitted for the cultivation of the beet, must be im¬ 
proved by draining. It is impossible to raise a good crop on 
gravelly soil, whatever may be its chemical constituents, inas¬ 
much as the roots bifurcate and divide into several smaller roots 
which are apt to retain gravel and small stones, which are after! 
wards very injurious to the machinery when the roots are cut. 
