Abstract
SUMMARY The effect of nitrogen fertilizer on the yield of sugar beet was tested in 170 experiments done between 1957 and 1966; results of 88 experiments, some testing five and six amounts of N, have not previously been published. On most sites, nitrogen increased sugar yields sharply and almost linearly up to an optimum beyond which yield changed little or decreased only slightly up to 1·8 cwt N/acre, the largest amount tested. In the two series of experiments giving most information, the mean increase from sub-optimal amounts of N was 2·5 cwt sugar/0·1 cwt N/acre. Usually 0·4–0·8 cwt N/acre was enough for maximum yield; more was needed on a few sites and on about a fifth of them nitrogen fertilizer was not needed. In 7 of the 10 years, the average optimum was 0·6–0·8 cwt N/acre; less was needed in the other years, the driest three years of the decade. In most, though not all, years, site-to-site differences in response between 0·9 and 1·8 cwt N/acre were no greater than could be expected from experimental error alone; much of the apparent difference in response between seasons were also attributable to this source. After taking account of experimental error, there were substantial between-site differences in response to amounts of N up to 0·9 cwt/acre, but attempts to explain them in terms of weather, soil and husbandry factors had little success. There was slight evidence of diminished responses to N where sugar beet followed crops other than cereals, and of responses somewhat greater than average on Chalky Boulder Clay soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Series; no other relationships were large or consistent enough to be useful for prediction. As between-site differences in response are largely unpredictable, and because a grower risks much greater crop losses by applying too little N than by applying too much, the recommended dressing is 1·0 cwt N/acre, substantially more than is needed, on the average, to obtain maximum yield. More N should be given on soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Series and on light sands poor in organic matter; less need be applied where crop residues are likely to supply much nitrogen.
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Claims 14
Claim · model-written summary
Nitrogen increased sugar yields sharply toward an optimum on most sites.
- Taxon
- sugar beet
Beta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0 - Treatment
- nitrogene0
- Outcome
- sugar yieldse0
- Direction
- increasede0
Not reportedComparator
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“On most sites, nitrogen increased sugar yields sharply and almost linearly up to an optimum beyond which yield changed little or decreased only slightly up to 1·8 cwt N/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Beyond the optimum, sugar yield changed little or decreased slightly through the largest nitrogen rate.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Treatment
- 1·8 cwt N/acree0
- Outcome
- yielde0
- Direction
- decreasede0
- Comparator
- optimume1
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“beyond which yield changed little or decreased only slightly up to 1·8 cwt N/acre”
e1“On most sites, nitrogen increased sugar yields sharply and almost linearly up to an optimum beyond which yield changed little or decreased only slightly up to 1·8 cwt N/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Mean sugar gain from suboptimal N was 2·5 cwt per 0·1 cwt N per acre.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Treatment
- Ne0
- Outcome
- mean increasee0
- Direction
- increasee0
- Value
- 2·5 cwt sugar/0·1 cwt N/acree0
- Comparator
- sub-optimal amounts of Ne0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the mean increase from sub-optimal amounts of N was 2·5 cwt sugar/0·1 cwt N/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Usually 0·4–0·8 cwt N per acre was enough for maximum yield.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- maximum yielde0
- Value
- 0·4–0·8 cwt N/acree0
- Qualifier
- Usuallye0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“Usually 0·4–0·8 cwt N/acre was enough for maximum yield”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
About one fifth of sites needed no nitrogen fertilizer.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- nitrogen fertilizer was not needede0
- Value
- about a fifthe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“on about a fifth of them nitrogen fertilizer was not needed”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
In seven of ten years, mean optimum nitrogen was 0·6–0·8 cwt per acre.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- average optimume0
- Value
- 0·6–0·8 cwt N/acree0
- Qualifier
- 7 of the 10 yearse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“In 7 of the 10 years, the average optimum was 0·6–0·8 cwt N/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
The driest three years needed less nitrogen.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- less was needede0
- Qualifier
- driest three years of the decadee0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“less was needed in the other years, the driest three years of the decade”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Between-site N responses up to 0·9 cwt per acre differed substantially after accounting for experimental error.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- between-site differences in responsee0
- Qualifier
- up to 0·9 cwt/acree0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“there were substantial between-site differences in response to amounts of N up to 0·9 cwt/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Weather, soil and husbandry factors poorly explained between-site response differences.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- little successe0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“attempts to explain them in terms of weather, soil and husbandry factors had little success”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
Responses to N were slightly diminished following crops other than cereals.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarise0
- Outcome
- responses to Ne0
- Direction
- diminishede0
- Comparator
- cerealse0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“slight evidence of diminished responses to N where sugar beet followed crops other than cereals”
Claim · model-written summary
Responses to N were somewhat above average on Hanslope and Stretham Chalky Boulder Clay soils.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- responsese0
- Direction
- greatere0
- Setting
- Chalky Boulder Clay soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Seriese0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“responses somewhat greater than average on Chalky Boulder Clay soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Series”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors recommend 1·0 cwt N per acre as the general sugar beet dressing.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- recommended dressinge0
- Value
- 1·0 cwt N/acree0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“the recommended dressing is 1·0 cwt N/acre”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors recommend more N on Hanslope and Stretham soils and light sands poor in organic matter.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- More N should be givene0
- Setting
- soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Series and on light sands poor in organic mattere0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“More N should be given on soils of the Hanslope and Stretham Series and on light sands poor in organic matter”
t0“sugar beet”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors recommend less N where crop residues supply much nitrogen.
- Taxon
- sugar beetBeta vulgaris subsp. vulgarist0
- Outcome
- less need be appliede0
- Qualifier
- crop residues are likely to supply much nitrogene0
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e0“less need be applied where crop residues are likely to supply much nitrogen”
t0“sugar beet”
The same questions in other papers
nitrogen · yield · Beta vulgaris (beet)Positive and negative results
141 papers in the same direction as this paper · 16 in the opposite direction · 3 reporting no difference from an alternative
- positive
- positive
- positive
157 papers more in this group
See all 161 papers →Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.