Row Spacing and the Use of Plant-Available Water in Sugarcane Cultivation in Water-Abundant Louisiana

Optimizing row spacing can potentially improve yields when resources such as light and water are limited. Sugarcane in Louisiana is principally grown on rows spaced 1.8 m apart, but interest planting 2.4 increasing. In this study, we hypothesized that wider would have greater availability. Soil moisture sensors were placed at 15, 30, 45 cm depths treatments: spacings, two varieties (L 01-299 HoCP 04-838), dates. was monitored 15-min intervals from 2017 to 2020. Mean volumetric content slightly than 15 cm, the biggest difference observed soil reached its lowest levels where had 1.1, 3.1, 9.8 times more available respectively, compared spacing. However, both plant-available always present top even during periods of low rainfall. Potentially, high availability provides an opportunity increase photosynthesis sugarcane by selecting for photosynthetic capacity CO2 uptake through increasesd stomatal conductance.