Mid-Season Observations

Sugar beet plots were established using three seedbed tillage options, two seed treatments and two planters. While there were no practical differences in plant population due to seed treatment or planter used, seedbed tillage affected both rate of emergence and 30-day plant population. Increasing the intensity of seedbed tillage created a drier seedbed, delayed plant emergence and reduced plant population. Use of an Accord precision planter improved plant spacing uniformity.

Sugar beet plots were established at the Saginaw Bean and Beet Research Farm to evaluate the effect of seedbed tillage, planter selection and seed type on plant emergence and stand, uniformity of beet spacing and size, sugar content and yield. All plots were fall moldboard plowed. Three seedbed tillage treatments were used: 1) fall spring tooth/stale seedbed, 2) fall spring tooth/single pass, shallow Triple-K, and 3) spring field cultivate/ Triple-K. Beets were planted with a John Deere 7300 general purpose vacuum planter and an Accord plate-type beet planter. Stand establishment goals included early season emergence and growth, a high plant population and an even spacing between plants in the row. Seedbed tillage was within a few hours of planting. Shallow tillage with was at a depth of 1-2 inches to break the surface crust and level the surface yet avoid excessive drying of the seedbed. Field cultivating was at a depth of 4-5 inches with two passes of the Triple-K to level and firm the seedbed.

Table1. Planting and crop care information

Soil Moisture
Increasing tillage intensity created a drier seed zone throughout the early growing season. This lack of soil moisture likely contributed to the delayed emergence in the spring tilled plots. When averaged across tillage systems, 83% of the 30-day population had emerged within 2 weeks of planting in the stale seedbed, but only 37% had emerged in the most intensively tilled plots.

Plant Population and Spacing
The target seed spacing was 6 inches (200 per 100 ft of row). When averaged
across tillage methods at 30 days after planting, the stale seedbed provided 19% more plants than the most intensively tilled land. Selection of planter
or seed treatment did not seem to have a practical effect on plant population within tillage treatments.  The accord planter delivered a larger percentage of plants within the desired 5 to 7 inch spacing than the John Deere planter.

Summary
Based on early observations in 1999:
Increasing the intensity of spring seedbed tillage reduced soil moisture, delayed plant emergence and reduced final plant population.  Use of the Accord planter improved the uniformity of plant spacing (see figures, page 3).