COSTS OF PRODUCING SUGAR BEETS 13
The expansion of the sugar-beet crop may be limited in some
areas by the character of its soil requirements. Regions of extremely
sandy or gravelly soils are not adapted to the crop nor are regions
having hardpan or very porous subsoils. However, these limitations
are not important; for almost any type of soil that will produce good
vields of other crops will yield beets, if properly cultivated and
sufficiently supplied with moisture.
An adequate supply of moisture is particularly requisite for the
development of this crop. In the humid region of the United States
a season in which the rainfall during the growing season is just suffi
cient to maintain a healthy growth until near harvesting time,
followed by a period of bright sunshiny days and cool nights 1s ideal.
A marked difference between day and night temperatures at the end
of the growing season is desirable for the proper production and stor-
age of the sugar in the beet. Such conditions generally prevail in
the sugar-beet section of the Central States. In the irrigated regions
of the West the application of moisture is completely controlled, pro-
viding the supply of water is sufficient. From two to four applica-
ions of water are necessary for the production of a good crop.
Unfavorable topography, particularly in the West, frequently
limits profitable sugar-beet production. Many valleys could be
utilized for growing beets were not the irrigable area available too
small to support a factory and were not the expense of shipment for
any considerable distance prohibitive. Hilly country is not usually
satisfactory for growing beets, particularly if the hills are composed of
soil that is likely to wash. The difficulty of drawing the heavy loads
of beets over hills may also be a limiting factor. In irrigated sec-
tions the land should have an even surface and be sufficiently sloping
for the irrigation water to spread easily.
The sugar beet, like other plants, during its period of growth, is
subject to a number of plant diseases and pests. In some sections,
particularly where crop rotation is not generally practiced, and in
some seasons, diseases and pests have constituted an important limi-
tation to production. Among the most destructive sugar-beet dis-
sases are curly top, root rot, leaf spot, and “damping off.”” Curly
top has so far been confined to the western beet area. This disease
is carried from diseased to healthy plants by the so-called leaf
hopper, which may appear in a given area destroying or stunting to
a worthless size practically all beets for one season, and may be
entirely absent from that area in the following season. Since the
establishment of the sugar-beet industry, the damage to the crop
from this disease has amounted to hundreds of thousands of dollars.
The sugar-beet nematode, a minute worm-like organism attacking
the beet root, is one of the most difficult pests to combat. In some
seasons and In some areas other insects also are destructive to the
crop. The United States Department of Agriculture and the State
agricultural colleges have conducted extensive research in the
cause and control of these pests with the result that some are well
known and easily controlled, while others are still obscure.
Despite such physical limitations, the possibility of greatly expand-
ing the crop acreage undoubtedly remains.
~ The economic limitations to the expansion of the crop are more
important than the physical limitations. Chief among these is the
competition of other crops.
