The cultivation of sugarbeet is very popular and is increasing practically every year. In the last growing season, the acreage for sugarbeet cultivation was 203 thousand ha and meant an almost 18% increase compared to the previous year. This season also saw an increase in yields per 1 ha compared to the previous years, which exceeded 60 t/ha, with the polarization higher by almost 17%. Based on the spring estimates of the Central Statistical Office of Poland regarding the size of sugarbeet crops and its yields in the 2017-2018 season, they are to be approx. 5% less than last year. However, the purchases are getting ready for the harvest of almost 2.2 million tons from 220 thousand ha of sugarbeet crops.
But what should be done in order for the sugarbeet to yield well and obtain high polarization, and thus be a crop profitable from an economic point of view? It turns out that it is enough to fertilize it well, not only into the soil, but also remember about how important is foliar fertilization with microelements!
The beetroot is a demanding plant. It has a high demand for nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus and calcium. For proper growth, it should also be supplemented with manganese and boron.
Many practitioners recommend to abandon high doses of fertilization with the basic ingredients that will increase the yield, in favor of boron (150 g/ha), iron (300 g/ha), zinc (100 g/ha), sodium (150 g/ha) and manganese (200 g/ha). Especially boron and manganese, which increase the polarization of sugarbeet, and thus give real income per unit area. The plants' demand for the above micronutrients can be ensured by foliar fertilization with DR GREEN BEETS technology. This technology involves three foliar fertilization of sugarbeets during the growing season, which provide plants with the optimal amount of nutrients at individual stages of their growth and development.
In addition, beetroot needs a regulated soil pH at the level of 6.0-7.0, because on acidic soils it is difficult to take up nutrients, and on alkaline components, they are less available.
Sugarbeet requires good soil. Only on such soils plants give a full-fledged crop. Therefore, it is recommended to use manure in the fall in the amount of 30-40 t/ha or sowing catch crops, the best are: blue phacelia and white mustard. As shown in field experiments, good results are also obtained after the autumn plowing of legumes with Italian ryegrass. It has been noticed that this is a much better solution than mixing only crop residues with the soil.
Organic fertilizers improve the soil structure, sorption properties and water-air ratios, and in addition increase the content of macro and micronutrients, which in turn leads to a reduction in the use of mineral fertilizers, and thus also a reduction in production costs.
In order to obtain a good beet crop, it is not only the soil abundance in nutrients that counts, the type of organic fertilizers and the amount of mineral fertilization. The date of phosphorus and potassium fertilization is extremely important. Some mineral fertilizers are recommended for use in the fall.
Since both phosphorus and potassium migrate poorly in the soil, they should be sown before winter plowing. They must be well mixed with the soil so that the roots of sugar beet, which can reach even 1 m deep, have easier access to nutrients from the subsoil, from which they derive the most water and nutrients.
In addition, fertilizers applied in autumn do not salt the top layer of soil, so they do not adversely affect growing plants. The nutrients mixed with the soil penetrate into its deeper layers, thus contributing to the formation of a proper root system. With shallow spring fertilization, sugarbeet roots are often deformed, and thus become an unattractive raw material for processing.
The remaining fertilizers should rather be applied in the spring. Only in a few cases, e.g. on light soils, potassium can be used before sowing.
Effective fertilization of sugar beet crops ensures optimal plant nutrition, and at the same time improves not only the quantity, but also the quality of the yield. Therefore, it is not worth abandoning it completely or treating neglectively.