Although sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) is an industrial crop, grown worldwide for sugar production yet in Pakistan, sugar is mostly extracted from sugarcane although soil and environmental conditions do support sugar beet cultivation. Beet sugar contents are higher than cane sugar contents, however can be sustained or even can be further increased by potassium (K) fertilization. Total K concentration is higher in Pakistani soils developed from mica minerals, but it does not represent plant available K for sustainable plant growth. A pot experiment was conducted in the wire-house of Institute of Soil and Environmental Sciences at University of Agriculture Faisalabad, Pakistan. K treatments were; No K (K 0), K application at 148 kg ha-1 (K 1) and 296 kg ha-1 (K 2). Irrigation levels were used as water sufficient at 60% water holding capacity and water deficient at 40% water holding capacity. The growth, yield and beet quality data were analyzed statistically using LSD with factorial design. The results revealed that increase in the level of K fertilization at water sufficient level significantly increased plant growth, beet yield and industrial beet sugar content. The response of K fertilization at water deficient was also similar, however overall sugar production was less than that in water sufficient conditions. It is concluded from this study that K application could be used not only to enhance plant growth and beet yield but also beet sugar content both under water-scarce and water-sufficient conditions.

Sugar beet, an important sugar crop, is particularly cultivated in humid regions to produce beet sugar, fulfilling about 25% of the world’s sugar requirement, supplementing cane sugar. However, sugar beet is not well adopted in the farming system of the tropics and subtropics, which is largely due to the historically well-established production technology of sugarcane and the lower awareness among local growers of sugar beet cultivation. Thus, the poor understanding of pest and disease management and the lack of processing units for sugar beet partially hinder farmers in the large-scale adaptation of sugar beet in the tropics and subtropics. Recent climatic developments have drawn attention to sugar beet cultivation in those regions, considering the low water demand and about half the growing duration (5–6 months) in contrast to sugarcane, sparing agricultural land for an extra crop. Nevertheless, a considerable knowledge gap exists for sugar beet when closely compared to sugarcane in tropical and subtropical growth conditions. Here, we examined the leverage of existing published articles regarding the significance and potential of sugar beet production in the tropics and subtropics, covering its pros and cons in comparison to sugarcane. The challenges for sugar beet production have also been identified, and possible mitigation strategies are suggested. Our assessment reveals that sugar beet can be a promising sugar crop in tropical and subtropical regions, considering the lower water requirements and higher salt resistance.

Direct seeded aerobic rice system has been developed and adopted as an alternative for medium-grain rice in many parts of the world, whereas efforts for aerobic basmati rice types are still in infancy. Among two major constraints for aerobic rice, weeds are progressively being eliminated to great extent through introduction of new herbicides; however, the issue of unfilled grains is still elusive. As potassium (K) deficiency produce sterile pollens in different crops, therefore possible K deficiency in aerobic rice production system may increase unfilled grains in rice. Therefore, it was hypothesized that K application may yield better by improving grain filling of basmati rice, especially, under aerobic conditions. Pot and field experiments were comprised of no K as control, K fertilization using 90 and 180 kg ha -1 keeping recommended N, P and Zn fertilization at the rate of 180, 125 and 25 kg ha . Decrease in number of un-filled grains may a contributory to paddy yield improvement in K fertilized treatments. The improvement in yield was more pronounced in Basmati-515 than Super basmati. Economic analysis showed higher benefit cost ratio for Basmati-515 with 90 kg Kg ha -1 under aerobic conditions. Net benefit of K fertilization was increased for both fertilizer rates and both cultivars except 180 kg K in Super basmati. As K fertilization increased the number of filled grains and improved the rice yield, therefore it is suggested to apply K fertilizers for better yield and expanded adaptability of aerobic rice production system for basmati rice. Availability of indigenous soil K under aerobic and flooded conditions should be quantified to develop precise K recommendations for both production systems of basmati rice.

No abstract