Sugar Producer

the acreage was Roundup Ready sugarbeet. Growers did an excellent job of weed control, resulting in an average of 2.2 herbicide applications per acre. The relatively dry conditions early in the season were also instrumental in the relatively low severity of Rhizoctonia damping-off and root rot caused by R. solani. Many growers used fungicides either at planting or post-emergent as a band or broadcast application to help in controlling R. solani. In mid-to-late July, growers used timely applications of fungicides with different modes of action to effectively control Cercospora beticola, the causal organism of Cercospora leaf spot. Although average rainfall was lower especially along the northern area of the Red River, the yield potential for a record crop resulted in pre-pile harvest starting in mid-August and full harvest in the first week of October. Conditions were favorable for harvest in early October but became more challenging as harvest was stretched into November. Despite the challenges, the resilient growers managed to harvest most of the sugarbeet crop with a record sugar concentration. Processing is going along smoothly and growers will be happy to get a favorable price for their 2012 crop. n 22  Sugar Producer  APRIL 2013 Guidelines to produce another great sugarbeet crop in 2013 • Take your planter units to a planter test stand clinic to make sure the seeds are dropped at the desired spacing. Take into account the germination and emergence information of the varieties to be planted from the coded variety trials. • Select varieties that will do well in the fields selected; select good disease resistant varieties for fields with history of diseases, such as Fusarium yellows, Rhizomania, Aphanomyces root rot and Rhizoctonia root rot. • Plant as early as possible to get a good plant population. • In fields or areas with a history of sugarbeet root maggot, make plans to use timely applications of insecticides/seed treatments. • In fields with a history of Rhizoctonia, think about using an in-furrow fungicide application. Make plans to apply effective fungicides before the threshold average daily soil temperature at the 4-inch soil depth of 65 degrees is reached. • Apply herbicides to control weeds when the weeds are small. • Scout for and remove any bolters. • Scout for diseases such as Cercospora leaf spot and make the first fungicide application when the first symptoms are observed. Continue to scout fields and use fungicides according to recommendations. • Prepare your defoliators and harvesters for another great crop. Editor's Note: Khan is an extension sugarbeet specialist in the plant pathology department for North Dakota State University and the University of Minnesota.

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