Sowing Sugarbeet

Helpful tips and advice on optimal sowing of sugarbeets

Sowing - the foundation for your success

To achieve maximum sugar yields, you should aim for a plant density of 80,000 to 100,000 plants/ha to harvest.

On the way to optimal plant density, you should keep in mind the possibility of losses, e.g., due to freezing, pests, siltation etc., and choose a seed rate of about 110,000 pellets/ha. Depending on your desired crop density, you will reach a:

Final distance between beet pellets of 18-22 cm
Row distance: 45 or 50 cm

Do your own check on the development of your crop by setting up a counting track:

Helpful under difficult emergence conditions
Total counted area should be 10 m²:
At 45 cm row distance: 2 rows of 11.11 m each
at 50 cm row distance: 2 rows of 10.00 m each
Multiply by 1000 to determine the plant population per hectare

Number of plants/ha at 45 cm row distance depending on sowing distance and field emergence:

45 cm row distance
		Field emergence (%)
Seed spacing in the row	Sowing in pill per ha	70	75	80	85	90	95
		Number of plants [1000/ha]
16	139	97	104	11	118	125	132
16.5	135	94	101	108	114	121	128
17	131	92	98	105	111	118	124
17.5	127	89	95	102	108	114	121
18	123	86	93	99	105	111	117
18.5	120	84	90	96	105	108	114
19	117	82	88	94	99	105	111
19.5	114	80	85	91	97	103	108
20	111	78	83	89	94	100	106
20.5	108	76	81	87	92	98	103
21	106	74	79	85	90	95	101
21.5	103	72	78	83	88	93	98
22	101	17	76	81	86	91	96
22.5	99	69	74	79	84	89	92
23	97	68	72	77	82	87	92

Number of plants/ha at 50 cm row distance depending on sowing distance and field emergence

50 cm row distance
		Field emergence (%)
Seed spacing in the row	Sowing in pill per ha	70	75	80	85	90	95
		Number of plants [1000/ha]
16	125	88	94	100	106	113	119
16.5	121	85	91	97	103	109	115
17	118	82	88	94	100	106	112
17.5	114	80	86	91	97	103	109
18	111	78	83	89	94	100	106
18.5	108	76	81	86	92	97	106
19	105	74	79	84	89	95	100
19.5	103	72	77	82	87	92	97
20	100	70	75	80	85	90	95
20.5	98	68	73	78	83	88	93
21	95	67	71	76	81	86	90
21.5	93	65	70	74	79	84	88
22	91	64	68	73	77	82	86
22.5	89	62	67	71	76	80	84
23	87	61	65	70	74	78	83

Sowing times for sugarbeets: As early as possible, as late as necessary!

To achieve high yields in the sugarbeet harvest, sowing should be done as early as possible. The later the sowing is done, the lower is the possible yield. However, note that: “Seedbed precedes sowing time”

Therefore:

Sowing is generally optimal between mid-March and mid-April
But be cautious in regions with a risk of late frost! Beets are especially sensitive to the effects of frost in the cotyledon stage

An additional important criterion determining the sowing time is the soil temperature. Germination of beet seeds begins at 5 - 6°C, but temperatures of 10 - 12°C are required for rapid and uniform emergence.

Create the basis for success by working precisely!

Sowing depth in sugarbeets

The sugarbeet seed pill should be placed at a depth of 2-3 cm. The pellet should be placed on a well reconsolidated layer to guarantee capillary connection.

Compare sugarbeet seed pills planted optimally and too deep:

Optimal sowing depth - little coverage

Seed planted too deep - extensive coverage

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