MESA K-12 Schools Program. UC Davis/Sacramento State MESA Center Thanks You! As another year closes for the Sacramento Area Center, we would like to thank our teachers, UC Davis Undergraduate Admissions and Outreach, and most importantly our students. Many congratulations on another successful year.
Sugar beets are a root crop, and flourish in temperate climates where the growing season is about five months long. A mature sugar beet is about one foot long, weighs two to five pounds, and contains about 18% sucrose, which is concentrated in its taproot.
Sugar beet was first identified as a source of sugar in 1747. No doubt the vested interests in the cane sugar plantations made sure that it stayed as no more than a curiosity, a situation that prevailed until the Napoleonic wars at the start of the 19th century when Britain blockaded sugar imports to continental Europe.