Author
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Glaz, Barry |
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Submitted to: Sugar Journal
Publication Type: Popular Publication Publication Acceptance Date: 1/10/2006 Publication Date: 7/15/2006 Citation: Glaz, B. Sugarcane variety census: Florida 2005. Sugar Journal 69(2):12,13,16-19. Interpretive Summary: Florida sugarcane farmers produce about 25% of the sugar produced in the U.S., more than is produced in any other state. Their cultivars come from a recently discontinued private program of the United States Sugar Corporation in Clewiston, Florida and a public program at Canal Point, Florida. The public program is supported by the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, and the Florida Sugar Cane League, Inc. This census reports total Florida sugarcane acreage, total acreage by cultivar for cultivars grown on more than 1% of Floirda's 2005, 404,592 sugarcane acres, cultivar use on organic and sand soils, cultivars planted in a fallow or continuous planting system, and cultivars planted manually or mechanically. The information summarized in this census was supplied by growers and mill managers. From 2004 to 2005, sugarcane acreage in Florida increased by 16,546 acres. Cultivars from the public program (Canal Point or CP cultivars) comprised 95.4% of Florida's total 2005 sugarcane acreage. Of this total acreage, 78.4% was on organic soil and 21.6% on sand soil. From only 63.8% of the planted acreage, it was estimated that 95.6% of Florida's sugarcane was planted manually and 4.4% mechanically. CP 80-1743, with 28.6% of the total acreage, was the leading cultivar in Florida, and CP 78-1628, the fourth most widely grown cultivar overall, was the most widely grown on sand soils with 40.6% of that acreage. CP 89-2143 (20.0% of the acreage) and CP 88-1762 (15.0% of the acreage) were the second and third place cultivars, respectively. The census quantifies cultivar use among Florida growers, and helps scientists plan experiments with the cultivars, planting systems, and soil types that best represent current industry operations. Technical Abstract: The Florida sugarcane industry produces about 25% of all sugar produced in the U.S. Varieties originate from two sources, a recently discontinued private breeding and selection program of the United States Sugar Coporation in Clewiston, Florida and a public program at Canal Point, Florida supported by the USDA-Agricultural Research Service, the University of Florida Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, and the Florida Sugar Cane League, Inc. The purpose of this article is to report the results of a 2005 survey of all Florida sugarcane growers requesting information on relative use among commercial sugarcane varieties, amount of sugarcane grown on organic and sand soils, percentages of sugarcane planted in the regular and successive planting cycles as well as by mechanical and manual planting systems. Most of the information was obtained from sugarcane mills, but a small percentage of the information was obtained from independent growers. Varieties from Canal Point breeding and selection program comprised 95.4% of the total Florida sugarcane acreage and varieties from the Clewiston program comprised 4.6% of Florida's sugarcane. CP 80-1743 with 28.6%, CP 89-2143 with 20.0%, CP 88-1762 with 15.0%, and CP 78-1628 with 12.7% of the acreage were the four most widely grown varieties among Florida's 404,592 sugarcane acres. Of these total acres, 78.4% were organic soils and 21.6% sand soils. Of the total planted acres, 62.4% were planted in the regular planting system and 37.6% in the successive planting system. |
