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      SUGAR BEET (Beta vulgaris sp.)

      Recommendations for cultivating sugar beets and for the use of FarmDroid, to help you shape your own successful recipe!

      A field of sugar beets

      1. TEMPERATURE REQUIREMENTS

       

      Growth stage and temperature

      °C

      Germination

      		  

           Lethal

      -5/-6

           Minimum

      5-6

           Optimal

      10-12

      Growth

      		  

           Minimum

      5

           Optimal

      16-24

       

      2. SOIL REQUIREMENTS

      Sugar beet is a can adapt to all soil types, but prefers deep and well drained soils with neutral to sub-alkaline pH, as the availability of macro and micronutrients is maximum in the pH range 6.8 to 7.2.

       

      3. SEED-BED PREPARATION

      Tillage should be done with soil humidity at 40-50% of field capacity whenever possible, to avoid excessive fuel consumption and tools wear due in dry soils, as well as worsening of soil structure and compaction in wet soils.

      For this crop, the objectives of seed-bed preparation are:

      • Uniform and soft soil, to provide a homogeneous germination
      • Soil should be loose and well aerated to:
        • Ensure water drainage in the whole layer, to avoid rotting of the root
        • Avoid excessive soil pressure on the root, so that it can expand to reach higher yields
      • Avoid breaking the soil excessively, as this will cause the formation of a superficial crust which favor water stagnation and will contrast germination, since sugar beets seedlings don’t have good soil-piercing capacities

      Different tillage strategies can be adopted by farmers, depending on local conditions and the implement availability. Primary soil operations are dependent on the texture:

      • Heavier soils: anticipate tillage in late summer, to avoid working on wet soils in the autumn or winter. Winter frosts helps reducing the lumps size, thus minimizing the need or number of secondary tillage
      • Lighter soils: postpone tillage to the spring, to avoid loss of structure

      General practices for soil cultivation are:

      • Plowing at 30-50 cm depth
      • In-line ripping or deep cultivating at 70 cm depth, to solve water stagnation and soil compaction (recommended for heavier soils)
      • Final preparation to achieve perfect soil consistency. Usually done close to the seeding date

       

      4. SEEDING

      Sugar beet is very sensible to frost damage and late frosts could easily kill most of the plants in a field. At the same time, to ensure good yields, it’s important to have enough leaves in the period where the solar radiation reaches its peak in terms of daylight hours and intensity. For this reason, the seeding date should be as soon as possible in the spring, minding that the young plants should avoid late-frosts.

      Seeding rates depends on soil texture, water content, climatic conditions and germinability percentages.

      Seed depth 2-3 cm
      In row distance 16-22 cm
      Distance between rows 40-50 cm
      Optimal plant density 90.000 - 125.000 plants/ha

      Seeding with FarmDroid FD20 would prevent compacting the soil, therefore providing the seeds the best agronomical conditions for their germination.

      Remember that for a homogenous germination, providing water is a key factor, whether it comes from irrigation, rainfall or capillary rise of groundwater.

      When planning the seeding of sugar beets, keep in mind to leave enough space in the headlands for harvest operations!

      LINK: Recommendations for operations in difficult soil conditions

       

      Good soil conditions and optimal seeding densities are a good start to achieve high yields

       

      5. NUTRITION ASPECTS

      A correct fertilization relies primarily upon the total crop needs, to the usage-rate for each element, as well as the nutritional status of the soil after the last harvested crop.

      Indicatively, the net (crop residuals are buried back in the field) nutrients uptake of sugar beets, given a yield of 55 t/ha is approximately:

      Macro-element

      Total requirement (kg/ha)

      N

      215

      P2O5

      100

      K2O

      320
        1. NITROGEN: is responsible for crop vegetative vigor. An excess promotes an unnecessary large leaves growth, lower the sugar-extraction yield. On the other side, a nitrogen deficiency, causes leaves and roots to grow at a slower pace.
          Nitrogen should be applied in two different stages whenever possible, to avoid leaching and loss of nutritive elements during the autumn and winter:
          1. 2/3 of the total amount applied with the primary tilling operation
          2. 1/3 of the total amount right before pre-seeding or by the 6-8 true leaves stage
        2. PHOSPHOROUS: is responsible for germination and to promote photosynthesis. Deficiency causes slow growth and desiccation of cotyledons. Shortage of available phosphorous can be spotted when leaves become reddish. This macro-element can be distributed in the soil right before the final seed-bed preparation tilling
        3. POTASSIUM: probably the most important macro-nutrient for sugar beets, it regulates carbohydrates’ metabolism as well as the plant’s hydric balance, which allow for optimal root performances. Potassium deficiency causes necrosis of leaves

         

        6. IRRIGATION PRACTICES

        Irrigation is fundamental for reaching a good quality as well as high yields, however, sugar beet does not require any special practice than what it is considered “standard” for the specific cultivation area and to fulfill the crop needs. Sugar beet can easily adapt to different watering techniques, from sprinkler to drip irrigation.

        The amount of water to provide greatly varies depending on the local climate, on soil texture and structure and, finally, to the crop growth stage. As for most of the field crops, germination and the early stages are the most susceptible to drought, but this does not mean that irrigation should be stopped once the crop has developed further.

        Again, finding a balance is a key aspect. Insufficient water availability causes lower yields and rapid leaves senescence. On the other hand, an excess, causes water stress and potential dead of plants, higher susceptibility to diseases and parasites attacks, leaching of nutrients.

         

        7. WEED MANAGEMENT

        Beets are sensible to competitions against weeds and to phytotoxicity effects of higher herbicides dose rates. For these reasons, mechanical removal of weeds is the optimal strategy to ensure optimal yields.

        Weeding, to be effective, should be done when the soil is sufficiently dry to remove/break weeds’ roots. Working depth should be set to shallower settings in first instance. Working deeper does not increase weeding efficacy but increases electricity consumption and parts wear

        Optimal growth in the early stages means a larger leaves area in later stages, which is the key factor to reach higher yields. As young plants cannot compete against weeds, it is fundamental to start with mechanical removal operations as soon as possible.

        1. A false sowing, followed by a blind weeding is very helpful in keeping weeds density low in the very early stages, which is where the crop is the most susceptible
        2. In pre-emergence, weeding is important both for keeping the competition with weeds low as well as to break the surface in those soils with tendencies to form crusts. Blind weeding is an efficient technique, as it can decrease the weed pressure of later stages by approximately 50%, but it requires you to check the germination status of your crop in various spots the field, as you want to make sure not to remove the sugar beets' cotyledons
        3. Weeding in early stages:
          • Keep a sufficient distance from the sugar beet plants to avoid lifting them out of the soil
          • If there is superficial crust, it is ideal to use the roller disks add-on to be even more gentle on the sugar beets plants

        It is not possible to provide a number of weeding operations that should be done within a production cycle. However, what FarmDroid recommends is to have the robot to constantly operate in the field. It would take the robot approximately 5-10 days to complete a field of 20 hectares, which means a 5-10 days interval between each passes. This is sufficient to keep the weed pressure as low as possible.

        Have a look at our recommendations for obtaining the best results with your FarmDroid FD20:

        Removing weeds is fundamental for sugar beets to reach higher yields and a good transformation quality

         

        8. HARVEST

        Sugar beet harvest requires special machinery. From the farming-quality point of view, the objectives are to collect intact roots, as clean from soil debris as possible.

        The quality of the harvest operations is influenced by agronomical factors:

        • Soil texture and structure: in hard clayey soils, the root tend grow with a rough surface, with prevent the product to be clean from soil debris
        • Seed density: a higher seeding density causes undergrown roots
        • Weed control: the harvesting tools will not get stuck frequently if the area is clean from weeds
        • Leaf spot of beet control: dry leaves would engulf the harvester

        From what regards the operations point of view, the harvesting elements must be set to the right working width and depth. Moreover, it is not recommended to proceed at high speeds or in wet soils.

        The roots average yield is approximately 55-65 t/ha, with peaks of 80-85 t/ha in Europe.

        The industrial-quality of sugar beet roots related to the sucrose content (higher the better) and the molasses content (lower the better). The average industrial yield rate for sugar beet roots is approximately 80%.