11/15/07 Roundup Ready sugarbeets in 2008

Growers for Amalgamated Sugar Company are planning to use Roundup Ready sugarbeets next year. One of them is Rupert farmer Duane Grant who attended a grower meeting prior to this year's harvest. GRANT "Of course this isn't a scientific poll but just based on statements there and what I've heard from growers since then everybody is planning on planting Roundup Ready beets." Grant says the only thing that would keep growers from going 100 percent Roundup Ready would be seed availability. Several seed varieties are needed for southern Idaho. GRANT "And seed that is planted from Twin Falls west has to be resistant to curly top virus. As you move east the incidents of curly top virus diseases. It has to do with the vector which is a beet hopper and the beet hopper simply doesn't survive in the eastern part of our growing region." Grant says instead of four or five herbicide applications to a field to control weeds the Roundup Ready beets will need one or two to insure total weed control. You can easily see the advantage with three to four fewer applications over 180 thousand acres of land; far less chemical use, less fuel consumed. Grant figures Roundup Ready seed will cost 50 dollars more per acre but he says the benefits outweighs that cost and in the end growers get sugarbeets that are as good or better than conventionally grown beets. Today's Idaho Ag News Bill Scott