Sugarcane Postharvest Residue Management in a Temperate Climate

Full retention of sugarcane (interspecifi c hybrids of Saccharum spp.) postharvest residue may reduce ratoon crop yields. The objective of this study was to determine the effects of different residue removal timings and methods on sugarcane yield. A two-factor (timing and method) experiment was conducted on both clay and silt loam soils in southeastern Louisiana. Removal timings consisted of the following physiological stages: predormancy, complete dormancy, intermediate dormancy, and postdormancy. Removal methods consisted of partial removal from the row top by mechanical means, complete removal by burning, and no removal (control) applied to fi rst, second, and third ratoons. Sugar yields following burning at predormancy (6800 kg ha–1), complete dormancy (6610 kg ha–1), and mechanical removal at predormancy (6500 kg ha–1) were greater than the control (6190 kg ha–1) for all ratoons. Burning at postdormancy decreased sugar yields by 440 kg ha–1 relative to the control. Ratoons responded similarly to the residue management practices evaluated, and effects were consistent on both clay and silt loam soils. Results show that the residue generated during the green-cane harvesting of sugarcane in Louisiana should be removed from harvested fi elds as soon after harvest as possible to ensure optimum yields of subsequent ratoon crops. R.P. Viator, R.M. Johnson, and E.P. Richard, Jr., USDA-ARS Sugarcane Research Lab., 5883 USDA Rd., Houma, LA 70360; D.L. Boykin, USDA-ARS Mid South Area Offi ce, 141 Experiment Station Rd., Stoneville, MS 38776. Received 10 July 2008. *Corresponding author ([email protected]). Abbreviations: TRS, theoretical recoverable sucrose. Published in Crop Sci. 49:1023–1028 (2009). doi: 10.2135/cropsci2008.07.0406 © Crop Science Society of America 677 S. Segoe Rd., Madison, WI 53711 USA All rights reserved. No part of this periodical may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher. Permission for printing and for reprinting the material contained herein has been obtained by the publisher.