Sugarbeet Feature Stories

This year, spring rains coupled with lower than normal growing degree days had much to do with the final sugarbeet yields in crop year 2019. Growers planting ahead of spring rains were very successful in establishing exceptional, healthy stands of sugarbeets with the help of natural moisture. ​

By Greg Dean

BOISE, Idaho – Cooler and wetter weather caused difficult field conditions early last spring which slowed many grower’s efforts to get sugarbeet fields planted early in southern Idaho and eastern Oregon. This resulted in later than average sugarbeet field planting dates when compared to the previous year.  Reasonably good stands of sugarbeets were eventually established with minimal replanting. 

The wetter soils in early spring and resulting soil compaction were later coupled with hot summer day and night time temperatures.  The combination was a likely cause for increased mid to late season presence of sugarbeet root diseases in some fields.  For the most part, growers’ efforts to control the diseases through treatment and management were successful. This last fall, growers were able to harvest and deliver their sugarbeets much cleaner and cooler than in past years. To date, sugarbeet storage and processing conditions have been near optimal.  The factories continue to extract sugar from delivered sugarbeets with no beet quality issues. 

​The 2017 sugarbeet crop yielded well for growers, as the company averaged 39.2 tons per acre and 16.84 beet quality lab sugar content.

By Jim Ruhlman

BAY CITY, Mich. - Michigan Sugar Company’s 2017 crop got off to a slow start with much of the planting taking place in late April and early May. Late April rains caused some significant crusting which affected stands in some areas of the growing region. The crop matured nicely through May and mid-June, but very heavy rains in late June proved to be too much for 15% of the crop.  While very few acres were abandoned, root disease took its toll on the affected acres.  

Fast forward to late August and the entire month of September and our entire crop was desperate for rainfall.  The drought-like conditions during this timeframe were too much for our crop to produce abundant yields.  Our average grower sugar came in at a healthy 18.5%, but our yield was a disappointing 25.5 tons per acre average. Cercospora Leafspot continues to be a big threat to the sugarbeet crop in Michigan, but growers did a fantastic job in controlling the disease through timely and frequent applications of fungicide.

By Tom Knudsen
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WAHPETON, N.D. - Sugarbeet seed issue took place March 30-31st and April 3-5th. The planting level for the 2017 crop was set at a range of 1.25 to 1.35 acres per share of stock. Planting was underway the second week of April. By mid-April, 13,000 acres (0.18 acres per share) had been planted. By the end of April, 58,000 acres had been planted. Planting was essentially completed by May 15th when 95,000 acres (1.32 acres per share) were planted.  Rainfall was timely for the planting of the 2017 crop which led to good germination and emergence. There was a significant freeze period the mornings of April 27th, 28th, and 29th when temperatures dropped to the upper 20’s. Little damage was noted on emerged and subterranean seedlings for the most part. Approximately 1,000 acres were replanted out of the total 95,000 acres planted this past season. Replant was primarily due to wind, crust and, to a lesser extent, frost.

Crop samples in July indicated another very good crop was in the works. That was confirmed a month later when the August samples were taken. The ag staff put the yield at 31.9 tons per acre.  The initial tentative corral on harvested acres was set at 15 percent; meaning 85 percent of the acres were eligible for harvest. That number was ultimately reduced in two stages to five percent.

Preharvest was underway Monday, September 11th. Main harvest commenced October 4th. Harvest 2017 was a lengthy drawn out affair due to intermittent warm temperatures which required numerous shutdowns. Harvest ended November 1st.  Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative growers harvested 90,172 acres and delivered a total of 2,909,615 tons of sugarbeets.  The crop averaged 17.0 percent sugar content, 89.4 percent purity, had a tare of 2.5 percent and yielded 32.3 tons per acre.

By Duane Peters

SIDNEY, Mont. – 2017 started off with drier than expected soil moisture.  As growers started to plant, we all realized that most fields would need to be irrigated to provide moisture to have equal emergence.  We were very thankful for our irrigation project. Irrigation water was available and many growers irrigated. The crop had very uneven emergence due to field dryness. As spring turned to summer, the irrigation became very important.  We had a drier than normal year. Rainstorms were far and few between.  We were three inches below normal for the months of June, July, and August.

Disease levels were very minimal due to dry weather conditions. Sidney Sugars started an early harvest this year, and that went very well.  Harvest started around September 12th.  Full harvest started on October 1st.  We completed harvest on October 26th.  Yield was 31.25 ton per acre and sugar was 17.99%.  Overall, we considered this a very successful growing year.  Beets appear to be storing well for the above normal winter temps.  We expect slice to finish about mid-February.