Sugarbeet Report

Fertilizer prices remain high and volatile. Who knows how available fertilizer will be for next season. Daniel Kaiser, University of Minnesota Extension soil scientist, has some fertilizer insight.

Today we’re talking about with Cercospora leaf spot resistance with Nate Wyatt, USDA Research Plant Pathologist in the Sugarbeet and Potato Research Unit.

Mark Boomquist, Director of Research for Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative, has an update from Southern Minnesota.

For many, disease and insects are a bit suppressed by the dry conditions. But the lack of water is also taking its toll on the beets. Eric Branch, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugar beet specialist, has the latest. 

A timely rain right now would go a long way for the entire crop, according to Joe Hastings, agronomist for the American Crystal Sugar Company. 

Mark Boetel, NDSU Extension entomologist, discusses the latest information regarding Sugarbeet pests.

Does the hot dry weather change any sugar beet practices in controlling Cercospora? Providing guidance is Ashok Chanda, Extension Sugarbeet Pathologist with the University of Minnesota and Northwest Research and Outreach Center in Crookston, MN.

The Sugarbeet Research and Education Board, who are they and what do they do?  Let’s find out with our guest, Robert Vivatson, President of the Sugarbeet Research and Education Board.

Cercospora leaf spot symptoms and stormy weather are hitting sugar beet crops. Let’s find out the latest with Eric Branch, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugar beet specialist.

Tom Peters, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugar beet agronomist is retiring. We’ll hear about his journey. 

The sugar beet root maggot is feeding on your crops and its numbers are on the rise. Mark Boetel, NDSU Extension entomologist has the latest.

Cercospora leaf spot symptoms are not showing in the sugar beet fields…yet. Let’s find out how the sugar beet crop looks with Eric Branch, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugarbeet specialist.

Today we’ll discuss sugar beet agronomy and weed control in sugar beet with Tom Peters, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugar beet agronomist.

Here with an update is Emma Burt, Research Agronomist for the Minn-Dak Farmers Cooperative. 

Mark Boetel, NDSU Extension entomologist, discusses the latest information regarding early season pests and what to watch out for in your fields.

Mark Boomquist, Director of Research for Southern Minnesota Beet Sugar Cooperative, has an update from Southern Minnesota.    

Some of the common soil-borne diseases that affect sugar beet growers include Rhizoctonia and Aphanomyces root rot. Offering disease management strategy is Dr. Ashok Chanda, Extension Sugarbeet Pathologist with the University of Minnesota and Northwest Research and Outreach Center in Crookston, MN.

Mark Boetel, NDSU Extension entomologist, discusses the latest information regarding early season pests and what to watch out for in your fields.  

Approximately 83% of the 2025 sugar beet crop in Minnesota and North Dakota has been planted. Tom Peters, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugar beet agronomist has the latest weed update.

The politics of growing sugar beets, Harrison Weber, Executive Director of the Red River Valley Sugarbeet Growers Association, has an inside view.

Daniel Kaiser, University of Minnesota Extension soil scientist, is researching the use of factory lime.

Eric Branch, NDSU and University of Minnesota Extension sugarbeet specialist, is here to kick off the 2026 Sugarbeet Report season.