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ARS Home » Southeast Area » Canal Point, Florida » Sugarcane Field Station » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #222398
Title: Sugarcane Variety Census: Florida 2007

Author
item Glaz, Barry

Submitted to: Sugar Journal
Publication Type: Popular Publication
Publication Acceptance Date: 2/15/2008
Publication Date: 7/15/2008
Citation: Glaz, B.S. 2008. Sugarcane Variety Census: Florida 2007. Sugar Journal. 71(2):6-11

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 Florida’s sugarcane acres, cultivar use on organic and sand soils, and cultivars planted in a fallow or continuous planting system. Official Florida sugarcane acreage is reported by the USDA-National Agricultural Statistics Service, and the acreages estimated in this census are usually similar to the officially reported acreages. The information summarized in this census was supplied by growers and mill managers. The information summarized in this census was supplied by growers and mill managers. In 2007, there were 381,657 acres of sugarcane grown in Florida. From 2006 to 2007, sugarcane acreage in Florida decreased by 20,066 acres. Cultivars from the public program (Canal Point or CP cultivars) comprised 99.9% of Florida’s total 2007 sugarcane acres for which varieties were specified. About 6% of the acreage was reported as having unspecified varieties and it is expected that CP varieties were not grown on a substantial portion of that acreage. Of the total acreage, 80.1% was on organic soil and 19.9% on sand soil. Of the planted sugarcane, 54.9% was planted in a fallow rotation and 45.1% was planted in a successive rotation. For manual versus mechanical planting, only 63% of the acreage was reported; it was estimated from this non representative sample that 94.5% of Florida’s sugarcane was planted manually and 5.5% mechanically. CP 89-2143, with 29.8% 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 38.0% of that acreage. CP 88-1762 (20.4% of the acreage) and CP 80-1743 (19.9% 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 private breeding and selection program of the United States Sugar Corporation 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 2007 survey of all Florida sugarcane growers requesting information on relative use among commercial sugarcane varieties, amount of sugarcane grown on organic and sand soils, and percentages of sugarcane planted in the regular and successive planting cycles. The information summarized in this census was supplied by growers and mill managers. Cultivars from the public program (Canal Point or CP cultivars) comprised 99.9% of Florida’s total 2007 sugarcane acres for which varieties were specified. About 6% of the acreage was reported as having unspecified varieties and it is expected that CP varieties were not grown on a substantial portion of that acreage. CP 89-2143 with 29.8%, CP 88-1762 with 20.4%, CP 80-1743 with 19.9%, and CP 78 1628 with 12.4% of the acreage were the four most widely grown varieties among Florida’s 381,657 sugarcane acres. Of these total acres, 80.1% were organic soils and 19.9% sand soils. Of the total planted acres, 46.5% were planted in the fallow planting system and 53.5% in the successive planting system.