Comparing of root transplanting with direct seeding of sugar beet in terms of quantitative, qualitative and economical yield in Hamedan region

Decreasing of water consumption, chemical inputs, production cost and risk are among the most important advantages of transplanting method. The aim of this study was to compare the transplanting and direct seeding methods in sugar beet. For this purpose, root transplanting along with direct seeding were performed in the farmer’s field in Hamedan in 2018. Sugar beet transplants were prepared in planting stock in April and transplanted to the main field in June. Direct seeding of sugar beet was performed in the main field in mid of May. During the growing season, necessary notes were taken and at the end of the season, root sampling was performed. After harvest, two planting systems were evaluated in terms of quantitative, qualitative and economic characteristics. Root transplanting system caused an increase in root yield and sugar yield by 15 and 47%, respectively compared with direct seeding system. Water consumption under root transplanting was 10080 m3 ha-1 which was about 18% less than direct seeding. In terms of water use efficiency, root transplanting method with an efficiency of 9.66 kg root m-3 was about 40% more than direct seeding method (6.90 kg root m-3). The economic evaluation of two planting methods also showed that the increase in net income by changing planting pattern from conventional to root transplanting system was higher. In general, results showed that root transplanting system had higher quantitative and qualitative yield and economical income compared with direct seeding method.