FUNDAMENTALS OF AGRICULTURE. 



SECTION XXIII. SUGAR CANE. 



BY PROF. H. P. AGEE, 

 Asst. Director in Charge, Louisiana Sugar Experiment Station. 



The sugar cane is one of the grasses. The roots 

 of the cane, like those of all grasses, are fibrous and 

 extend laterally from the root stock, which is nothing 

 more than the close jointed, woody underground por- 

 tion of the stalk itself. These roots are fibrous and 

 delicate, and the root stock is not of sufficient length 

 to give material support to the stalk which, with its 

 heavy weight, is often uprooted by winds. The depth 

 to which the roots penetrate is dependent largely upon 

 the texture of the soil and the level of the ground 

 water. Instances are reported of roots descending to 

 the depth of five to ten feet, but this is unusual. 



The Stalk of the cane has a general cylindrical form 

 and varies in length with conditions of growth and 

 variety from three to four feet to fifteen or eighteen. 

 It is sometimes erect, but more often crooked on ac- 

 count of bending from its own weight, or being pros- 

 trated by wind. The diameter of the stalk varies 

 from one to three inches and is practically uniform 

 throughout the entire length, though in some of the 

 varieties there is a slight taper from the base upward. 

 The stalk consists of nodes and internodes. These 

 internodes or sections are from one to two inches in 

 length to six or eight inches, and occur in an average 

 cane to the number of about fifteen to twenty, though 

 when short and crowded together there are often as 

 many as sixty to eighty. The rind has a polished ap- 

 pearance, is tough and thick, and according to variety 

 is colored in various shades and mixtures of red, pur- 

 ple, green and yellow, or it may be striped or 

 splotched in a combination of these colors. The color 

 is materially affected by a wax-like covering called 

 " cerosin," which occurs on the mature joints. This 

 may be either white or black. 



