Capital journal. (Salem, Or.) 1893-1895, 1894-08-11
HARVESTING SUGAR CANE.
Methods Employed on the Great Pianta-
tions In Southern Loo oisitna.

!
! Methods Employed on the Great Piants-
tions In Southern Loo isiana
Tho sugar cane harvect begins in the
upper parishes early in October. Tho
( first cane is usually harvested green and
/ yields small amount of sugar, With Il
large proportion of molasses. Below the
city of New Orleans the harvest does not
usually begin until Nov. 1, or in some
! instances later. There are sometimes
severe frosts in the latter part of Novem-
Der, and in December ice occasionally
| forms.
| The ripe sugar cane is not damaged;
but, on the contrary, is rather benefited
by a light frost. Cold. however, severe
enough for ice to form is Liable to entail
serious losses unless tho cane is promptly
worked or protected. There are two
methods of protecting cane when frost
is anticipated. One consists in wind.
rowing, and the other in cutting and
covering the cane with trash. In wind.
rowing, the cane Is cut and heaped in
the rows without any attempt being
made to remove the trash-that is, the
tops and leaves. The cane from two
rows is thrown into one middle, the tops
being turned one way and covering the
stalks. This entails considerable extra
labor before the cane can be sent to the
sugar house to be worked, since the
trash must be removed. Many planters
windrow their cane, especially above
New Orleans. where the frosts are often
| severe.
The first crop after planting is termed
"plant cane" A second crop springs
up from this stubble and is termed ''first
ratoons," or perhaps more generally,
''first stubble," and the third season
there is another crop called "second
stubble." Additional stubble crops
could be taken in subsequent seasons,
but each crop would become smaller,
more woody and less profitable. Hence
in Louisiana usually only plant cane and
first and second stubble are harvested.
Those planters who can spare The land
usually follow second stubble with COW
peas and corn or COW peas only. The
COW peas have many of the qualities
of clover and are usually grown both
for feeding and fertilizing purposes.
Cow peas form one OF the most valuable
green fallow crops grown in the south.
Many of the planters are compelled
through lack Of tillable land to plant
cane after cane for many years without
letting the land lie in fallow.
The average yield ef clean cane per
acre, year in and year out, will not vary
much from 20 short tons. The leaves
and tops, amounting to several tons ad.
ditional, are burned after the harvest.
This is a large amount Of organic and
mt 1eral matter to take from a single
acr Of land and is indicative of the mar
velous fertility and productiveness of
the lands bordering OH the Mississippi
and it's tributaries. Authentic Yields
far surprising these figures have been re-
ported. Entire plantations have yielded
an average of 85 tons of clean cane per
acre. This enormous drain upon he
soil must be compensated for; hence the
sugar planters are among the best Gus
toners the commercial fertilizer may
have. Cottonseed meal is very largely
employed as nitrogenous fertilizer and
is applied mixed with superphosphate of
lime. The dose per acre is often as
large as 500 pounds of cottonseed meal
and 300 pounds superphosphate. Fer
tilizers are distributed in April and
May, small amount, usually cotton
seed meal. being sometimes applied with
the seed cane in spring planting.
The value Of an average crop of cane
is from $50 to 500 per acre, or, when re-
duced to sugar basis, from $125 to $500,
according to the excellence of the manu-
facture. Notwithstanding this large re-
turn per acre, the margin of profit is
small, according to Dr. G. L. Spencer.
authority for the foregoing, which was
originally prepared for The American
Farmer.