New sugarcane cultivars developed for sand soils of south
Florida Two new sugarcane cultivars specifically developed for
Florida's sand soils have been released by Agricultural Research
Service scientists and cooperators. The new cultivars, CP
00-1446 and CP 00-2180, were developed at the ARS Sugarcane
Field Station in Canal Point, Fla., as part of an effort to
provide growers with more cultivars that yield well on sand
soils. The new cultivars are the result of cooperative research
with the University of Florida and the Florida Sugar Cane
League, Inc. During testing, potential sugarcane cultivars are
evaluated on their yields of cane and sugar. Both CP 00-1446 and
CP 00-2180 produced high quantities of cane, and their sugar
yields were 32 percent and 15 percent higher, respectively, than
the sugar yield of a commercial variety used for comparison.
Growers in Florida usually get three annual harvests from one
planting of sugarcane. Both new varieties produce very high cane
yields for the first harvest and mod