Additional Chelated Iron and Organic Amendment Influence on Yield and Quality of Sugar Beet under Various Plant Populations

Abstract

A field experiment was executed at Kalabsho, Dakahlia Province, Egypt in a sandy loam soil, during 2018/2019 and 2019/2020 seasons, to study the influence of humic acid levels (without, 7.5 and 15 l/fed) and chelated iron levels (without, 0.5 and 1.0 g/l) on sugar beet grown under three hill spaces (15, 20 and 25 cm). A split-split plot design was used. The results cleared that increasing hill spaces from 15 and/or 20 cm to 25 cm had a substantial increase in leaf area index in both seasons, and sugar lost to molasses (SLM) in the 1st one, whereas, extractable sugar%, quality index, sugar and root yields/fed were markedly reduced, in both seasons. Raising humic acid level from 7.5 to 15 l/fed had an appreciable increment in net assimilation rate (NAR),extractable sugar%, sucrose%, root and sugar yields/fed, in both seasons, and quality index in the 1st one, meanwhile, SLM was not affected. The maximum values and statistical increases were detected in root dimensions, photosynthetic pigments, NAR, sucrose%, extractable sugar%, quality index, sugar and root yields/fed, and low impurities content and SLM, when chelated iron concentration was raised to 1.0 g/l. Effects of the significant interactions among the studied factors on the recorded traits were discussed. Under the present work conditions, sowing sugar beet on 15cm and/or 20cm between hills, soil drench with humic acid at 15 l/fed and spraying foliage with 1.0 g Fe-EDDHA/l, can be recommended to get the highest root and sugar yields/fed and the best quality traits.