How to Fertilize Sugar Beets Scientifically: Key Technical Points Explained

Sugar beet is a herbaceous plant of the Chenopodiaceae family, Beta genus. It is one of the raw materials for sugar production and also one of the most popular vegetables abroad. In China, sugar beets are mainly distributed in **, Heilongjiang and Inner Mongolia. The scale of artificial sugar beet cultivation is now continuously expanding, so do you know how to fertilize sugar beets? Let's learn about it together below.

1. Base fertilizer

Base fertilizer, also called bottom fertilizer, is usually applied according to the principle of heavy and deep application. For most crop cultivation, the base fertilizer is basically mainly farmyard manure or organic fertilizer, and sugar beet is no exception. There are generally three ways to apply base fertilizer. First, it can be applied in combination with autumn land preparation. Second, it can be applied when plowing in spring. Finally, it can be applied by breaking the ridges and tucking in fertilizer or by fertilizing when forming ridges. The base fertilizer should also be spread evenly, and used together with a small amount of chemical fertilizer, which can effectively improve the soil structure.

2. Seed fertilizer

Basically, most crops do not need seed fertilizer when planted. The reason seed fertilizer is applied when planting sugar beets is that sugar beet seed kernels are very small and low in nutrient content. In order to promote seed growth and development, we need to apply seed fertilizer when sowing. Seed fertilizer is usually mainly phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, or farmyard manure and sugar beet-specific microbial inoculants. In addition, when applying seed fertilizer, it must be kept separate from the seeds to avoid burning the sprouts.

3. Extra-root topdressing

Topdressing for sugar beet is mainly divided into two major aspects. The first is extra-root fertilization, and the second is foliar fertilizer. Let us first understand extra-root fertilization. Extra-root fertilization is generally carried out according to the growth condition of the sugar beet. When the sugar beet is growing well, we usually only need to carry out extra-root fertilization twice, and each topdressing is mainly urea, which can be used together with phosphorus and potassium fertilizer, or sugar beet-specific fertilizer. If the growth state of the sugar beet is not very good, then we need to reasonably control the amount of fertilizer used and increase the number of topdressings according to the specific situation. When fertilizing, we need to open furrows at the roots, with a furrow depth of about seven to eight cm, apply the fertilizer, and then cover it with soil.

4. Foliar fertilizer

In order to improve the quality of sugar beet, we also need to carry out foliar fertilization when applying extra-root fertilizer, so that sugar content in the sugar beet can accumulate. For foliar fertilization, we need to strictly control the concentration of the foliar fertilizer. Generally, about one percent potassium fertilizer and about two percent phosphorus fertilizer are sprayed. Alternatively, boron fertilizer can be used appropriately, about thirty kg per mu, and trace fertilizers should be reasonably supplemented according to the sugar beet's demand for nutrients during growth. During root growth of the sugar beet, boron fertilizer can be used twice a week to avoid yellowing or decline of the leaves.

The above is a simple fertilization technique for sugar beet. Unscientific fertilization methods not only fail to improve the yield and quality of sugar beet, but instead affect the normal growth of sugar beet. Therefore, we need to grasp the fertilizer requirements of sugar beet, and then fertilize reasonably to promote high yield and high quality of sugar beet.