Vol. VIII. No. 17.5. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



Sugar-cane Experiments at Barbados. 



At a iiieetinj^ of the Barliadus AgruMiltiiral Society 

 held on December II last, Professor (rAlbmiuerque and 

 Mr. John R. Bovell presented a summary of the chief 

 results obuined in connexion with the sugarcane 

 seedling and manurial experiments, carried on at 

 Barbados under the direction of the Imperial Depart- 

 ment of Agricu.lture, during the crop season I90(i-.S. 

 These e.xperiments Lave now been in progress for a long 

 period, and daring the past ten years no less than 33,000 

 varieties of cane have been raised from seed, and their 

 qualities studied before planting out in the field, and in 

 many cases, in the chemical laboratory also, for the purpose 

 of selecting and jiroinigating the kinds that possess the most 

 desirable agricultural and chemical characters. An account 

 of the methods followed in raising new seedling canes was 

 given liy Professor d'Albuquerque, who also referred to the 

 introduction of the process of artificial hybridization into the 

 work, by the help of which it is hoped to obtain more certain 

 results ill a shorter time than if the work was carried on 

 solely with varieties of cane, the parentage of which was 

 not completely controlled. 



Selected varieties of seedling canes were, in the crop 

 season 1906-8, grown on twelve black-soil estates and three 

 red-soil estates, which represent every variety of soil and 

 climate in sugar cultivation in the island. The plots of land 

 on which the selected varieties were grown were in every case 

 cultivated in the same manner as the rest of the canes on the 

 estate. 



The weather eonditii.ins, on the whole, were not favour- 

 able, the season being very dry, so that the growth made was 

 poor, and root disease was more prevalent than usual. 



Of the selected varieties grown in comj)arison with the 

 White Transparent on black-soil estates at Barbados. Scaly 

 Seedling, B. 3,412, B. 208, B. 3,747, and B. 147 did best, 

 coming in the order given. While White Transparent 

 yielded 4,809 lb. of muscavado sugar per acre, B. 208 gave 

 5,41U lb., or an increased value of ^lO'SS per acre compared 

 with the .standard variety. R. 3,412 yielded .5,780 Itx, and 

 Sealy Seedling 6,184 ft)., the.se being increased values of 

 .?1757 and §24-89 per acre respectively, compared with the 

 return from WTiite Trans[)arent under similar circumstances. 

 The superior returns given by the seedling varieties are 

 still more apparent when the figures for the red-soil estates 

 are considered. Taking first the results for plant canes only, 

 the list is headed by cane B. 1,521, which gave 7,446 R. of 

 muscovado sugar per acre, as compared with 4,710 tt). yielded 

 by White Transjiarcnt, the increased value of the return from 

 the seedling being §49'50 per acre. A number of other canes 

 also ga\e excellent results on red soils in comparison with 

 the standard variety. The chief of these are : B. 3,405, 

 yielding 7,165 R. of nui.scovado sugar per acre, with a value 

 of t44-'44 per acre in e.xcess of that given by the White 

 Transparent ; B. 3,390, yielding 6,920 tti. of sugar per acre, 

 and an increased value of 840 ; B. 1,386, yielding 6,88<S lb. 

 of .sugar, with an increased value of .•?39-42 ; B. 1,566, yield- 

 ing 6,608 lb. of sugar, with an increased value of ■S34-35 ; 

 and B. 3,412, which gave 6,570 D). of muscovado sugar per 

 acre, and a value of •■533-67 over and above that yielded by 

 the White Transparent cane. B. 376, B. 1,753, and D. 95 

 grown as plant canes on red soils also gave returns valued at 

 829-57, 825-61, and 821 '25 per acre respectively, in excess 

 of the crop yielded by White Transparent. 



Taking next the average returns fi-om a crop of I'lant 

 canes and a crop, of first ratoons grown on reil-soil e.^tates 

 (plant canes reaped in 1907 and ratoons in 190S), it is seen 

 that cane B. 1,386 comes out first, with' a total yield of 

 13,944 ft. of muscovado sugar for the two crops. This 

 represents a value of 873-27 per acre in excess of the return 

 ( 9,896 ft. ) given liy White Transparent during the two seasons. 

 Canes B. 3.390 and B. 3,405 gave returns valued at 865-45 

 and 859-86 per acre respectively (for the two reapiugs) over 

 and above the value of the sugar crop from White Trans- 

 parent, while the yields from B. 376, B. 1,566, and B. 3,412 

 were only slightly less in value. Following these, come 

 D. 95, and B. 208, with crop yields for the two years of 

 11,977 ft. and 10,890 ft respectively, of muscovado sugar. 

 These yields were worth 83765 and 817-99 per acre more 

 than the yields from White Transparent under similar circum- 

 stances. 



Considering now the results obtained every year sin^-e 

 1900, it is seen that six seedlings have, on the average of the 

 seasons, done better than White Transparent as plant canes 

 on black soils. B. 3,696 comes first among these, with an 

 average return, for the nine years, of 6, 1 1 2 ft. of muscovado 

 sugar per acre. The average yield given by White Tran.s- 

 parent was 5,211 ft. per acre, the value of this return being 

 816-31 less than the .seedling. B. 1,529 takes second place, 

 with an average return of 5,762 ft., the value of which is 

 $997 per acre better than the crop from AVhite Transparent. 

 B. 20S and B. 147 are third and fourth as plant canes on 

 black .soils, their average crop yields since 1900 being 

 5,697 ft and 5,627 ft. of muscovado sugar per acre with 

 increased values of 88-80 and 87-53, resi.ectively, comiiared 

 with White Tr-ensparent. 



Coming next to the red-soil estates, the superior crop- 

 yielding powers of many of the seedlings, compared with 

 White Transparent, is as evident over the whole period 

 1900-8, as in the season 1 906-8 alone. Taking the results from 

 plant canes alone. White Transparent has given an average 

 return of 4,515 ft. of muscovado sugar per acre during the 

 nine years. This yield has been exceeded by nine seedlings, of 

 which B. 3,405 come-i first, with an average annual return of 

 7,802 ft. of muscovado sugar, valued at 859-50, in excess of 

 the yield from White Transparent. B. 3,412 is second on the 

 list, "with an average return of 7,467 ft., worth 853-43 per acre 

 more than the crop from the standard cane. ^ The other 

 seedlings which surpassed White Transparent in yield a.* 

 plant canes on red soils are : B. 3,390, average return 7,388 ft. 

 of nuiscovado sugar per acre ; B. 1,566, average return 6,894 ft. ; 

 B. 1,529, average return 5,470 ft.; B. 376, average return 

 5,457 ft.; B. 1,521, average return 5,446 ft.; B. 208, average 

 return 5,353 ft.: and D. 95, average return 5,116 ft. per acre. 



Taking the average results both for plant canes and 

 ratoons on red soils during the past nine years, the returns 

 from White Transparent have been excelled by those from 

 four seedlings. Tlie average yield for two crops (plant canes 

 and 1st ratoons) from White Transparent has been 9,012 ft. 

 Under the same circumstances, B. 208 gave an average 

 (two-year) crop of 9,724 ft. of sugar per acre ; D. 95 yielded 

 10,403 ft.; the average (two-year) crop from B. 376 was 

 10,778 ft.; , while B. 1,566 did best of all, giving an average 

 yield, over the two years, of 12.244 ft., worth 858-.50 per 

 acre more than the return from White Transparent. 



Some notes on new seedlings and on the manurial 

 experiments with sugar-cane in progress at different 

 stations in the island will bo given in the next issue. 



