272 The Sugar-Beet in America 



In these furrows the cane is planted, and they also serve 

 as carriers for the irrigation water later. Water is ap- 

 plied soon after planting and at intervals of about a week 

 throughout the growing period. 



CULTURAL METHODS 



The cane stalk is so cut in joints that there will be at 

 least one bud on every joint; these are dropped in the 

 furrow end to end, as shown in Plate XXX, with a slight 

 lapping to insure a good stand. The upper part of the 

 stalk, not suited for anything else, is usually planted. 

 They are covered with one inch to an inch and a half of 

 soil, and carefully watered in order to promote an early 

 sprouting. Cultivation is also begun and continued as 

 long as the plants permit. In some parts of the tropics, 

 practically no care is given the cane after it is planted ; 

 it is allowed to yield from year to year whatever nature 

 will produce unaided. 



In some sections, fresh plantings are made for every 

 crop, but a more common practice is to allow " ratooning, " 

 or a growing up from the roots. When this is done, a 

 furrow is plowed along the row after cutting to help in 

 aerating the soil, and a fresh growth begins at once. 

 When but one year of growth from the roots is practiced, 

 it is called a "short ratoon"; when the growth is con- 

 tinued two or three years or longer, it is called a "long 

 ratoon." In Hawaii it used to be the practice to plant 

 every crop, but now ratooning two or three crops is more 

 common. In Cuba the crop is ratooned for long periods, 

 sometimes twenty years or more. 



