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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Canal Point, Florida » Sugarcane Field Station » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #393500
Research Project: Development of High-Yielding, Stress Tolerant Sugarcane Cultivars Using Agronomic, Genetic, and Molecular Approaches

Location: Sugarcane Field Station

Title: Responses of sugarcane yield components to harvest dates for cultivars with different flowering characters

Author
item Zhao, Duli
item Rounds, Elliott
item ZHU, KAI - Guangxi University
item Aldrin, Michelle

Submitted to: American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/31/2022
Publication Date: 7/16/2022
Citation: Zhao, D., Rounds, E.W., Zhu, K., Aldrin, M.A. 2022. Responses of sugarcane yield components to harvest dates for cultivars with different flowering characters. American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists. 42:12.

Interpretive Summary: N/A

Technical Abstract: Better understanding of sugarcane yield components for different cultivars with diverse flowering characters as affected by harvest date can improve variety development programs and production profitability. A field study was conducted at the USDA-ARS Sugarcane Field Station in 2018-2021 to determine effects of harvest date on yield components for eight commercial cultivars with different flowering behaviors. These cultivars could be grouped early flowering (CP96-1252, HoCP96-540, CP11-1314), late flowering (CP89-2143, CP05-1526, CP11-2248), and no flowering (CP00-1101, CP01-1372). The experiment was a complete random block design with three replications. Millable stalks were counted in August and 10-stalk samples were collected in each plot monthly from Mid-October through February (5 times) in plant cane and two ratoon crops. These stalk samples were weighed and milled to determine cane fiber, juice Brix, and POL for estimating yield components and their responses to harvest date. Cultivar, crop cycle, and harvest date significantly affected most yield components of stalk population, stalk weight, commercial recoverable sucrose (CRS), and cane yield (TCH). Among eight cultivars, CP01-1372 and CP11-1314 had highest, while CP96-1252, CP89-2143, and CP00-1101 had lowest sucrose yield (TSH). Stalk population seemed to be not associated with flowering behavior. Both TCH and CRS followed the polynomial trends with harvest date. Early flowering cultivars had higher TCH and lower CRS as compared with no-flowering cultivar. The differences among the three flowering groups in TSH were smaller than in TCH. Results from this study can be used to improve knowledge of maturity curves and to optimize harvest date for TSH and juice quality, based on cultivar flowering characteristics.