There was a lot to see (and hear) at the Amalgamated Sugar Company’s field day in Paul, Idaho, this week. There were equipment updates/spraying suggestions/maintenance tips, a weed update from University of Idaho researcher Dr. Albert Adjesiwor and, of course, tours of the research fields near the Paul sugar factory.
We took lots of photos in the fields at Suchan Farm, Amalgamated’s research farm in Paul, and are sharing some here. This particular set of photos is of part of the OVT Demonstration Plots, where researchers pulled sugarbeets to show attendees their progress. A few of the sugarbeets were laid on the ground with a sign showing the seed company and the variety being grown/researched.
Amalgamated Sugar Manager of Plant Health and Sugarbeet Quality Improvement Oliver Neher pointed out that what we were seeing was purely for demonstration purposes to show the different varieties. It gave growers and other field day attendees a chance to see more than just sugarbeet tops but the beets themselves. Neher said researchers will go back to the same fields in a month and a half (end of August) and do the same thing.
The sugarbeets were all planted at the same time and in the same conditions. Of course, keep in mind that much of southern Idaho experienced a cool, wet spring so the sugarbeets might not be as big as some expected.
Because there are so many photos, we’ve divided the photos into two groups showing the different varieties and their growth.