St. Tammany farmer. [volume] (Covington, La.) 1874-current, 1920-03-27
Cane Growing Put Forward
AS One of the Crops
for Money Making.
CANE GROWN HERE
AND ON CUBAN SOIL
Warner Speaks From Elk
perience in st. Tammany
Parish and in Cuba.
(By VIM. H. Warner, Guantanamo,
Cuba.)

write these few lines to the farm
ers of St. Tammany parish because
l feel that it will be advantageous
for them to know something more Of
the great sugar industry, which, if
properly handled, will bring our par
ish to the top as an agricultural an |
sugar manufacturing section of LOU
isiana.
AS l have been fortunate enough
to be among those who have had the
opportunity of tilling the virgin SOL
of St. Tammany parish, especially
that of Covington. it is after seven
years of work and study with this
soil that l come to the conclusion
that it is better adapted to sugar
cane than to any other crop. |
speak this from experience, and not
through any theoretical and impra,-
tical channels.
Any one who has had the least ex-
perience with the cultivation of cane,
knows that it requires less work the
year round than any other crop. In
proportion to the yield, the cost Of
cultivation is very small, and any
one who doubts the veracity Of this
statement has my challenge to "try
it out"
From my experience with cane In
St. Tammany parish | apprehend that
the average yield per acre is from
20 to 80 tons. To make my point
more clear, take for example 81.
Tammany farmer who has five acres
in cane. At the rate of Is tons per
acre this man cuts 125 tons. Each
ton Of cane in Louisiana should aver
age about 125 pounds of sugar. At
present prices of sugar the total re-
ceived from his five acres should
range between $2500 and $4,000.
Deducting the expenses of cultlva-
tion and handling of the crop, which
should not be more than $500, would
1t not be worth while to try crop
that pays so we'll, also one which
lasts two or three years without re-
planting? Could anything be more
inducive?
OF course, the raising of the cane
would necessitate the erection OF a
couple of sugar and syrup mills In
St. Tammany. The farmers will not
raise the cane until they are sure or
a. mill to grind it. Some OF them
NAV not care to make sugar or syrup
on their own resources, but prefer
to sell their cane to the mill for
grinding. This year the price of
cane in Louisiana ranged from $lo
to SIT per ton. Here in Cuba, al
though the cane grows twelve months
in the year. with no frosts to retard
growth, the crop yields about 40
tons per acre and sells for $14 to 81 {
per ton. OF course, the cane yields
more sugar per ton than Louisiana
cane, but this, I think, is due more
to the different climatic conditions.
The per cent of sucrose in CUBAN
cane is about 1850, while we have
an average per cent Of fiber at ll.'o.
This Is not much greater than the
averages in Louisiana cane, but the
purity of the juice Is higher, being
about 88 per cent.
But it is not my object to make a
comparison between the State OF
Louisiana and Province de Orient7
de Cuba, insofar as their cane rails
ing qualities are concerned. / mere
ly want to let the St. Tammany peo-
nile know what I think of the future
cane production of st. Tammany
There is no argument produced that
can defy the statement that our par
ish Is adapted to cane raising. There
is no person who can prove that can
cultivation is not a paying proposl-
ton, if properly handled. And more
than that, show me the person vino
saws that the St. Tammany farmers
do not want to make money. wen
then. il st. Tammany and cane rais-
ing 60 together, and money and
farmers are good friends, what shali
prevent the parish of st. Tammars
from coming to the front in the grea'
sugar industry? The answer IS, oul
farmers must be given a chance
They need the cooperation or tae
business men, merchants, manulac,
turers and officials. lncidently
might say that the best friends the
farmer has is the plow and the noe
Here's hoping that next time
have the pleasure Of putting my 100
| on the best soil in Louisiana-st
| Tammany soil-that I shall see al
around me sugar cane gorwing ever
where. In the interior of these fieids
there will be several large sugar an.
syrup mills, and all over the PARIS
will be seen prosperous iook'ns
planters, ever eager to get more ian'
to raise more cane.