Vol. IX. No. 216. 



THE AGRICULTURAL NEWS. 



U3 



SUGAR INDUSTRY. 



SUGAR-CANE IN PORTO RICO. 



A series of articles by D. W. May, Special Agent 

 in Charge of the Agricultural E.xperiment Stafioii, 

 Porto Rico, on the sugar-cane in that island, is appear- 

 ing in the Porto Rico Horticidtund Neu's. The 

 following extract is taken from the second article of 

 the series, given in Vol. Ill, No. 6.. p. 9.5, of this 

 journal: — 



At the experiment station the following varieties have 

 given e.xcellent results: I>.9.5, D.llT, B.34T and B.13.").5. As 

 resistent to drought, T.77, I). 11 7, B.347 and B.3-'^'.l have 

 done well on the south side of the island. At the Central 

 San Christohal, on the east end of the island, the preliminary 

 test of the seedling canes has been very satisfactory, and so 

 far as tested, they' are ranked as follows: T.77, B.3 289, 

 B.347, D.117 and D.9.J. In Louisiana, D.74 is highly' con- 

 sidered. In Porto Rico, however, while very .sweet, this cane 

 does not grow large, as it ripens early. It is well suited to 

 a short growing season like that in Louisiana. The Ouanica 

 Centrale, on the south side of Porto Itico, has several hundred 

 acres of seedling canes growing. The following results 

 obtained there are of interest and value. 



In this district, canes were planted on October 1, 1907 

 5^ by .5i feet, and harvested on December 52 and 23, 190s! 

 All varieties Avere fertilized, irrigated and cultivated alike. 



Comparative test of cane at Guanita Centrale: 



these— the manner in which leguminous plants obtain 

 nitrogen from the air— was first investigated reasonably 

 by Boussingault, but it was not made plain until sixty- 

 three years later. There are others, of equally far- 

 reaching importance, awaiting discovery; and mankind 

 cannot afford to stop to count the annual cost of the 

 attempts to find them out — far less, through impatience, 

 to decrease the means by which they are brought to 

 light. 



Comparative test of varieties of cane at Hacienda 

 Montserrate: — 



Variety. 



Yield 

 per 

 acre. 



Dens- Sue- 

 ity. rose. 



At Hacienda ]\Iontserrate, the following varieties of cane 

 were planted on September 25, 1907, and harvested on Decem- 

 ber 28, 1908. All varieties were fertilized and cultivated alike. 



Ton?. Brix. 



(a) Control plot. Attacked by fungus disease (Mnmsmiits 



saccluii-i). 



(b) Slightly attacked by fungus disease (A/crasm/i/.s s,;rl,aii). 



\y. lUmboo 

 D.117 

 B.347 

 Tibboo Merd 



64-66 

 64-60 

 60-24 

 5251 



16-9 

 17-5 



17-8 

 16-1 



Per 



cent. 

 13-0 

 15-0 

 15-3 

 14-2 



,.^7" Glu- 



tientof 



„ .. cose. 



purity. 



Glu- 

 cose Fibre, 

 ratio. 



76-9 

 85-7 

 85-9 



88-2 



Per 

 cent. 

 1-85 

 1 79 

 1-96 

 1-72 



14-2 

 11-9 

 12-8 

 12 1 



Per 

 cent. 

 106 

 11-0 



9-45 

 11-3 



In Louisiana, splendid results have been obtained by the 

 introduction of D.74 and D.95, two Demerara seedlings. The 

 Louuiann Station Ihdletin, No. 78, gives the history of these 

 seedling cane.s, and the results of tests conducted from 1894 

 to 1 903 are reported. In every instance, the two seedlings were 

 lower in glucose content than the home canes. A low glucose 

 content is of great advantage in working the juice D 74 gave 

 especially favourable results in this respect. The avera<re on 

 analysis showed that this seedlins contained 18 percent 

 ino^re sucrose, an.l D. 95 9 per cent, more than the home canes! 

 D.(4 yielded 5 68 tons of cane more per acre than the two 

 native varieties, while D.95 was about equal to them in cane 

 production. The financial results are based on a value of 4c 

 per lb. for yellow clarified sugar, giving half to the 

 producer of the cane and half to the manufacturer of the 

 sugar. On this basis, the crop of plant canes and first year's 

 ratoons of D.74 gave an average increase of .f39 70 per acre, 

 and D.95 of.?21Sl over the home canes. With- the pfemt 

 canes of the first, second and third ratoons, the figures were 

 §26-28 and 82814 per acre, respectively. The results 

 obtained in the mill showed a marked superiority of D.74 

 over the three other canes, although D.95 gave better returns 

 than the two native sorts. In total extraction, D.7*-sh«wed 

 an increa.se of 787 per cent., or nearly 11 per cent, in the 

 juice, over the home canes. A summary of the resulfe gives 

 an increase of 2-34 per cent, in extraction, and of 407 tt>. of 

 sugar, per ton of cane ground, in favour of the seedling canes. 

 Co-operative tests made by twenty-seven planters throughout 

 the State confirmed the results obtained by the station. 

 D.74 is more vigorous, a more rapid grower, gives a larger 

 tonnage, is an erect cane, and on this account is b'.-lieved to 

 be more economical in harvesting: ratoons well, if not better 

 than home canes, gives a larger extraction, and has a larger 

 sugar content, yielding mere sugar per ton and giving 

 a greater tonnage per acre than home canes. The same 

 remarks, in a less degree, apply to 0.95. 



At the Hawaiian Sugar Planters' Station in 1906, 5,232 

 .seedling canes were grown. Of 279 raised from West' Indian 

 seed imported in 1904,37 have been sufficiently promising 

 to merit special testing on the station grounds. Tests of 

 varieties in 1 903 show D. 1 1 7 at head of list with 333,670 ft. 

 cane, yielding 43,010 lb. sugar per acre. 



Information has been received concerning the new centre 

 of shipping and manufacturing activity which is being formed 

 midway between Grimsby and Hull, by the Great Central 

 Railway Company, through the establishment of the Port of 

 Immingham, with special docks, the object being to provide 

 an additional port on the east coast of England. This is con- 

 tained in a pamphlet, which may be obtained on application 

 to the Publicity Department, Great Central Railway, 216, 

 Marylebone Road, London, N.W. 



