Green sugarcane versus burned sugarcane - results of six years in the Soconusco region of Chiapas, Mexico

In Chiapas, Mexico, 25 619 hectares of sugarcane are grown yielding 2 277 386 tons of cane and 245 660 tons of sugar annually. In order to provide a different outlook for the Mexican sugarcane agriculture, one long-term experiment was carried out in Huixtla, Chiapas, from May 1998 to December 2003, with Saccharum spp., variety MEX 69 -290. The experimental design consisted of a strip system (100 x 32.5 m) with 3 cropping management treatments (not burning as opposed to one and two burnings), arranged as a block design with each 20 fixed internal replicates. During the 6 years, the different cropping managements and the growth parameters of sugarcane were monitored monthly as well as the dynamics of abundance and dominance of weed communities. Results point toward the potential of cutting sugarcane green as a strategy for sustainability with significant long-term differences noted between treatments such as lower weed aggressiveness, greater biomass production (i.e. stalk height, diameter and number of stalks), juice purity and sugar yield. Furthermore, differences were noted in soil organic matter, nitrogen, potassium and phosphorus content, as well as pH. Double burning of sugarcane resulted in greater weed abundance, lower presence of soil macro-organisms, a higher incidence of Diatraea spp. (stalk borer), and a slightly lower presence of Aeneolamia and Sigmodium species. Economic analysis showed a much higher gross income with green cane in comparison with one burning and two burnings.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Toledo Toledo, Ernesto, Pohlan, Jurgen Doctor 5441, Gehrke Vélez, Malc Rodney autor/a 13430, Leyva Galán, C. Ángel autor/a
Format:	Texto biblioteca
Language:	eng
Subjects:	Caña de azúcar, Agricultura, Sistemas de explotación agrícola, Artfrosur,
Online Access:	http://www.tropen.uni-bonn.de/new_website/englische_seiten/Research/Publications/docs/130%20Janp20-23GREEN.pdf
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