The sugar beet (beta vulgaris subsp. vulgaris var. altissima) a agricultural cultivated plant is belonged and to the family of the fox tail plants (Amaranthaceae).

Emergence

The sugar beet originated in toward end 18. Century by breeding from the whereby purposefully at a high sugar content one selected. Thus the sugar content could be increased of initially 8% to 16% (around 1800), had today's sugar beets a sugar content from 18 to 20%. The sugar beet is world-wide one of the most important sources of raw material for the production of sugar. The constitutes today about 45% of world sugar production.

Biology

The sugar beet is a two-year plant, trains thus only in the second year bloom conditions and a seed.

In the first year it develops a Blattrosette with approximately 20 broad planar long up to 30 cm and the root in the vegetative development stage aboveground thickens to a white carrot body. The sugar beet is a Pfahlwurzler, their roots can up to one and a half meters deeply into the soil extend.

The harvest takes place after the first year, since effected in this period storage is highest from reserve materials and thus the sugar content, which determines the economic use. At the harvest time the carrot has a weight from approx. 700 to 800 G. the highest sugar content concentrates in the center piece of the carrot.

In the second year, 1.5 m high branched bloom conditions with inconspicuous, five-tough leagues blooms develop for the generativen phase. The sugar beet is Fremdbefruchter.

The sugar beet is predominantly cultivated in the moderate climatic area. Main circulation area is Europe, in addition, in the USA, in Canada and in Asia the sugar beet is cultivated. For a high yield the sugar beet needs moderate temperatures, much light, much water, deep nutrient-rich soils with good discharge. The water requirement of the sugar beet is particularly in July and August high. In the spring the plant is frost sensitive.

Cultivation

The cultivation of the sugar beet is, where conditions permit it, much being worth, places however particularly high requirements at the condition, fertilization and treatment of the soil. The more dryly the climate, the more requires the carrot a tiefgrundigen, fresh soil with plentiful nutrient supply. Best own humose loam and unsuitable are loose, poor, dry sandy soils, tough clay soils and all flachgrundigen, wet soil types.

Seed

One builds the sugar beet gladly after fertilized winter grain, falls gleans as soon as possible, plows after some weeks low and eggt and rolls in the spring. If one wants to freshly fertilize, then the fertilizer must be brought very timely in the autumn into the soil. From the mineral fertilizers phosphates stand in first row. Since the vegetation time takes 26-30 weeks, one sows as early as possible, at the end of March or Anfang April on the flat country or into combs, in rows or in Ever enrich the soil, the more closely must be built, in order to receive not to large carrots. With the row seed one gives a distance from 30-50 cm, the with the Dibbelmaschine is usually implemented. One needs here 9-10, with the twisting seed 15-20 kg of cores per hectare. Possible incrustation of the soil eliminated before coming up the seed by over driving with a pinfeed platen, later chops one two or three times and lets finally an easy follow. After first heels the carrots on 18-20 cm are isolated, and one facilitates this work with the row seed, by pulling through transverseover with the horse heel. From the remaining plants one takes all off up to the strongest and puts her between the rows, in order to prevent an arising of weeds.

The sowing takes place in the middle of March to at the beginning of of May. Technically complex prepared seeds with single grain SAE machines in rows in the distance from 45cm and/or 50cm and a depth from 2 to 3cm one yields, an existence is reached by 7 - 11 plants per m

Harvest

The harvest takes place starting from in the middle of Septembers to in the middle of November, whereby a later harvest has advantages in good weather, since the sugar content rises with longer vegetation time.

In former times the harvest took place from sugar beets via manual work. One cut head and sheets off and stung the carrots then out or one stung her only out and removed then with a measurer head and sheets. For the out stinging one used a spade, a fork or the carrot jack. The were used as Viehfutter. The out-stung carrots were released from that, at them responsible, earth. The cleaned carrots were loaded then either by hand or with a carrot fork on a trailer and transported to the further processing into the sugar factory.

Also today the harvest procedure still takes place in three work procedures, removing the sheet work and the taking the carrot out of the soil and taking up the carrot from the soil. There is the possibility of letting the first two work procedures of a machine and a gathering of a second machine settle or all work procedures with a machine, the of implementing. There are these machines either in a self-propelled variant or to the enterprise at a tractor. The sheets of the carrots are directly when removing and left then either on the field, shipped for fertilization or directly on a trailer and used as fodder.

The yields are with 400-700 dt/ha, which makes the production of 10t for sugars possible.

Use

The sugar beet is cultivated as raw material for the industrielle production of sugar (Saccharose). The Zuckerausbeute amounts to about 16-17%.

As by-product results with the harvest, which is trained mostly as again into the soil. To small extent the is used as fodder for cattle.

The arrears of the sugar production, like the leached out and the molasses, serve as feeds.

Sugar beet syrup (carrot herb) is eaten gladly as bread upstroke, particularly in cultivation areas, is however also Germany far in the trade available.

Sugar beets are used also for the production by bio ethanol.

Economic meaning

Half at present of the sugar produced world-wide is almost won from sugar beets. In the European Union approx. 120 million tons carrots per year are produced, from which the European sugar industry 14 - 16 million tons of crystal sugar wins. Germany with approximately 500,000 hectares and France, as well as Poland are the main producers; but in almost all European countries sugar is manufactured. Nearly 90 per cent of the sugar consumed in Europe originate today from domestic cultivation. This has its reason to a large part in the protective duties of the European Union, which give preference to the native opposite the more inexpensive Rohrzucker.

See also: Sugar market regulations

History

• 1747 - The chemist Andreas Sigismund Marggraf prove for the first time the sugar content of the
• 1801 - After the successful selection of the white schlesischen carrot the Physiko chemist Franz Karl oh pool of broadcasting corporations creates also the bases of the industriellen sugar production. The first of the world develops in Cunern/Schlesien.
• Around 1850 the mechanization of the cultivation of sugar beet began with the introduction of the Wanzleber of plow and the triple steam engine.
• 1858 invention of the steam plow by John Fowler.

Related links

• Sugar beet breeder Strube Dieckmann
• Institut for sugar beet research
• The sugar beet with AEIOU
• Sugar from carrots
• Agricultural news service sugar beet
• Consultation and information for the South German cultivation of sugar beet
• Carrot herb factory

Articles in category "Sugar beet"

We found here 20 articles.