Sugar Cane?

[drill sgt]

seems like some years ago some people grew certain varieties of the cane that were more user riendly for people chewing... unless you could find this type of cane it could be a hit or miss opertunity. ....................................... drill sgt.

 

[BOSS351]

Drill sgt brought up what I was going to ask about. As a kid my dad would pull over and get some pieces and bring them home to us kids..this in the 60s and early 70s. Man that was some of the sweetest stuff ever! Fast forward to today. A friend told me he did that for his kids and it’s nothing like what we had as kids. Are they growing a different variety?

 

[3fifty7]

Drill sgt brought up what I was going to ask about. As a kid my dad would pull over and get some pieces and bring them home to us kids..this in the 60s and early 70s. Man that was some of the sweetest stuff ever! Fast forward to today. A friend told me he did that for his kids and it’s nothing like what we had as kids. Are they growing a different variety?

Yes, different varieties are released every few years. Some stick around longer than others. Some varieties are bred for different growth characteristics, such as high sugar content early on, cold tolerant, high stalk population, drought resistant, disease resistant etc. When released it takes several years to expand and harvest a substantial amount to get good feedback.
In the 70’s typical sugar content was around 170-180lbs per ton, this year most mills are averaging 215lbs per ton.
Perhaps he’s just missing the nostalgia.

 

[3fifty7]

If you want to waste time your time, id love for you to PM me. I'm aware of the cost of the equipment, my dad farmed cane for over 35 years. He went out of business for himself before having to get a combine. I'm only interested in how much more sugar is made per ton. I dont think if i say "yield" it's correct because tons dont exactly mean sugar content.

It seems it was pushed onto farmers instead of an option. in 1997, was your combine able to pick up and gather far better right away with the old varieties? Could you give me a number of how much sugar (in terms of money from mill {assuming CRS was close to the same}) was there in one square of cane after harvested both ways? For example from 1996 to 1998 did you guys produce more sugar for the same variety of cane in a said square of cane? I do understand that is personal info and it's no big deal if you wont share.

I understand what you are asking and you want a quantifiable answer but there isn’t one. Even if I would try to dig up 25 year old records, which I’m not, there is so much variation year to year the numbers may or may not reflect what you are asking in an accurate manor. Growing conditions and harvest conditions vary year to year so much you would have to average ten years of data of side by side harvesting techniques in the same fields. I’m sure Cameco did some of this on their R&D farm but I couldn’t testify to it.

In great conditions of dry harvest cutting 40ton standing cane the difference in harvested sugar would be negligible. Cutting the same 40ton cane in the mud that’s been blown down for 30 days would show a difference of 5 tons or more(possibly 15 tons),
harvested with the billet harvester that would have been lost with the whole stalk harvester.

 

[BOSS351]

Yes, different varieties are released every few years. Some stick around longer than others. Some varieties are bred for different growth characteristics, such as high sugar content early on, cold tolerant, high stalk population, drought resistant, disease resistant etc. When released it takes several years to expand and harvest a substantial amount to get good feedback.
In the 70’s typical sugar content was around 170-180lbs per ton, this year most mills are averaging 215lbs per ton.
Perhaps he’s just missing the nostalgia.

Thanks for the info! Next time I’m in Cajunland along a cane truck route I’ll have to pick up some samples and try myself!

 

[3fifty7]

Thanks for the info! Next time I’m in Cajunland along a cane truck route I’ll have to pick up some samples and try myself!

Fresh out the field, don’t eat anything that fell off the truck.

 

[Abby Normal]

Where yat 3fifty7, did the freeze hurt hurt the cane? I noticed a big change in color. Everything has changed color now. Even the water hyacinth is brown & dead.

 

[3fifty7]

I’m in Bunkie, yes this freeze will be extremely detrimental to the remaining cane crop in our area.

 

[SVT Bansheeman]

In great conditions of dry harvest cutting 40ton standing cane the difference in harvested sugar would be negligible.

That's good enough.

With that said, if the difference is nearly the same then the farmers still have to pay for the expensive combine, wagons etc that is only associated with billets. That's a major problem unless I'm over looking the big picture. Anyway, I'll quit my rants. Thanks for your time and info you gave.

 

[Barry J]

I would think the big savings now would be labor. Takes a lot less people to do it quicker now. Then the mill doesn't have to deal with all the dirty cane that has been laid on the ground in the mud and burnt. And if I remember right, when the farmers started going with the chopper harvesters, the trailers were retrofitted to work. They didn't have to buy new.

 

[3fifty7]

That's good enough.

With that said, if the difference is nearly the same then the farmers still have to pay for the expensive combine, wagons etc that is only associated with billets. That's a major problem unless I'm over looking the big picture. Anyway, I'll quit my rants. Thanks for your time and info you gave.

Please don’t only take one line that seems to support the side of the story you want it to.
That example is closer to the exception than the rule.
The billets make for a more efficient hauling situation, we are able to send a much fresher product to the mill, there is less equipment being run, and less hours being worked to get the same job done, and less crop loss.
Outside of controlling entities/government dictating policy every industry advances by increasing productivity at an acceptable cost. It can still be done other ways but when the entire industry moves one direction it’s for a reason.

 

[SVT Bansheeman]

I am not for any side. I just want to see the data. I really hope when all is said and done, the combine is far superior.

 

[dantheman]

After all of this , I wonder if the OP got his cane ?

 

[Baker Shake]

OP update…not yet, lol. I’m prob up against the clock this year, but had a couple decent tips to follow up on even if I get it next season. And interestingly enough…learned a decent amount about sugar cane farming history in the process. Have a Happy New Year everyone!

 

[sandman7925]

Where yat 3fifty7, did the freeze hurt hurt the cane? I noticed a big change in color. Everything has changed color now. Even the water hyacinth is brown & dead.

And I’ve read that between the freeze and lack of rain last fall we can expect some really high crawfish prices this spring/summer.

 

[MikeBurke]

I was on HWY 87 today near St Mary Coop and saw a tractor pulling a wagon to the mill on 87 with cane cut by an old style cutter, saw the double row cutter a little way down the road, it made me think about this thread.

To the original poster if you get your cane out of the field, especially early season, keep in mind the farmers aerial spray it with Roundup before harvest. Not everything is sprayed but it is something to keep in mind if glyphosate bothers you.

Another comment on combines is a lot of small farms do not own harvesters, trailers, or trucks now. They belong to a harvest group owned by the mill.

357, I hope you were able to get your crop out of the fields before it went bad. I am on the coast, talking to some farmers they felt they were ok , others not so much.

I remember reading once the our cane is grown further from the equator than anywhere else in the world. Not sure if that is true.

And lastly one big failure of the combines is when they first came out there was talk of not having to burn the cane. Farmers are still burning fields, I would suspect within the next decade that practice will have to end due to some government restriction or lawsuit by environmental group.

 

[3fifty7]

We are still harvesting, probably have another week to go. The quality has definitely taken a big hit but it’s still acceptable. Some varieties are holding up better than others. We don’t expect to be able to harvest it all.
This is the northern most cane in the world some was recently planted just outside of Alexandria.
Only about half of the cane harvested is burned, mostly from more rural areas. Pressure from city governments has had a big impact on where cane is burnt. The practice of burning is beneficial to the farmer but its days are most likely numbered.

 

[folivier]

Hey 3fifty7 interested in what the farmers that can't burn the cane are doing with the leaves? Leaving them in the fields? Harvesting them for biofuel?
I've heard that it doesn't decompose readily. Just interested in what they're doing.

 

[sandman7925]

We are still harvesting, probably have another week to go. The quality has definitely taken a big hit but it’s still acceptable. Some varieties are holding up better than others. We don’t expect to be able to harvest it all.
This is the northern most cane in the world some was recently planted just outside of Alexandria.
Only about half of the cane harvested is burned, mostly from more rural areas. Pressure from city governments has had a big impact on where cane is burnt. The practice of burning is beneficial to the farmer but its days are most likely numbered.

Recently it’s been a daily rainfall of ash where I live. Tons of it gets in my pool everyday. Doesn’t hurt anything but some people hate it.

 

[3fifty7]

Recently it’s been a daily rainfall of ash where I live. Tons of it gets in my pool everyday. Doesn’t hurt anything but some people hate it.

I’m pretty sure the mill in Lakeland is one of the only mills accepting burnt cane post freeze.

It’s kinda like living in the vicinity of a paper mill, or near the landfill on 190, near railroad tracks. It may not be ideal but it’s the way things currently are. When burning we do our very best to catch the wind in a favorable direction those around our fields.