HARVESTING OF CANE 317 



Harvesting of Cane. The cane is tall and heavy and harvest- 

 ing is very laborious, as it is chiefly done by hand (Fig. 209). In 

 climates where frost occurs the cane is allowed to ripen as much 

 as possible before cutting, as this will increase the sugar content. 

 The expert learns from the appearance of the plants just when to 

 harvest the crops (Fig. 210). The sugar content decreases if the 

 cane is kept too long before grinding. For this reason the harvest 

 should be prolonged and the grinding may begin when harvest 

 begins. To have all the cane in its best condition through a long 

 period of harvest is somewhat difficult. It is accomplished by the 

 use of varieties which mature at different times, by harvesting 

 from light soils first and from heavy soils later, and by the use of 



FIG. 210. An up-to-date cane harvester. This machine will do the work of a hundred men. 



(Louisiana Station.) 



fertilizers, as more nitrogen tends to delay ripening and less nitro- 

 gen will hasten the ripening. 



Before the grinding is done the leaves and tops of the canes 

 are removed. This is usually done in the field before the cane 

 is cut. Danger of frost may require cutting the crop before the 

 tops and leaves are removed, but their removal afterward requires 

 more labor. Cane is usually hauled directly from the field to the 

 grinders. Cane harvesters have been devised, but have not come 

 into general use, and most of the crop is still cut by hand, because 

 many of the canes are blown down or bent over. In much of the 

 sugar cane belt hauling from the fields is done on wagons. It is 

 thence taken by rail to the sugar factories to be rolled or ground 



