Sugar Tech最新文献

Leaching is an important loss pathway that limits N-fertilizer recovery by sugarcane. Our study evaluated the potential for leaching and recovery of ¹⁵N-fertilizer by sugarcane cultivated in sandy soil. Three nitrogen fertilization management strategies were tested: single dose (80 kg ha⁻¹), split (40 kg ha⁻¹ + 40 kg ha⁻¹) and supplementation (80 kg ha⁻¹ + 40 kg ha⁻¹), one more control; without nitrogen (N). Ammonium nitrate (AN) and ammonium sulphate (AS) were the sources N used. Leaching was determined by the N-mineral concentration (NH₄⁺, NO₂⁻ and NO₃⁻) and ¹⁵N-fertilizer in the soil solution at a depth of 0.7 m. Nitrogen recovery was quantified using ¹⁵N-fertilizer in the sugarcane shoots. Significant leaching occurred in the first 60 days after fertilization (DAF), but splitting the fertilization reduced N-mineral leaching by 50%. During this period, 78% of the nitrogen in the leachate originated from the fertilizer (NDFF_(L)). The contribution of nitrogen fertilization was highest in the first 30 DAF, where the fertilizer accounted for 39% of the nitrogen absorbed by sugarcane. But the plant’s nitrogen recovery (R) was limited to only 4% of the applied nitrogen. At harvest, the R of ¹⁵N-fertilizer by sugarcane was less than 20%. Splitting or applying a single dose of fertilizer did not improve nitrogen recovery at the end of the cycle. Our study showed that the leaching and recovery of ¹⁵N-fertilizer were found to be proportional to the applied doses according to the management strategies and nitrogen sources compensated for nitrogen leaching throughout the cycle.

Sugarcane is a raw material used to produce sugar and ethanol. Its growth is influenced by meteorological factors. This study aimed at providing a modeling framework to simulate sugarcane stalk elongation by considering the planting stage and meteorological factors. Using plant height data and meteorological data collected in Guangxi (China) during 2018–2022, combined with the cumulative temperature function, a multi-parameter generalized logistic model was constructed to simulate changes in plant height for spring planting and ratoon sugarcane. The meteorological effects on sugarcane growth were further quantified. Expressions of six models simulating sugarcane growth were given by fitting the data. The results showed that the selected model could simulate the elongation period of sugarcane well, and it simulated Guitang No. 42 sugarcane most effectively. Sensitivity analysis showed that effective cumulative temperature and cumulative precipitation had the greatest influence on sugarcane growth and growing duration. It was also found that increasing rainfall to the optimum level in August was the most favorable for sugarcane growth.

Soil organic carbon (SOC) management is crucial for promoting crop growth and maintaining sustainability. In calcareous soils, there is a consistent decline in SOC in agricultural soils, with many soils exhibiting notably low SOC content. In this context, evaluating the potential of sugarcane–ratoon systems should be a priority, as these trashes play a vital role in sustaining SOC levels, enhancing soil health, and ultimately influencing cane yield positively. We investigated the effects of trash management and the application of Trichoderma on the growth, yield, SOC, and its fractions in a sugarcane plant–ratoon system. Thus, a field experiment was conducted in a randomized block design with five replications with four treatments, which consisted trash mulching (RM) or incorporation (RI), or removal (RR) with or without Trichoderma (T). RI + T influenced the growth and yield attributes viz. plant height, tillers, cane diameter, and millable canes positively. An improvement of 12.0 and 21.3% in cane yield was recorded after the harvest of the third ratoon crop as compared to RM and RR, respectively. The highest SOC stock (28.84 Mg ha⁻¹) was recorded with RI + T treatment. Furthermore, RI + T plots had 35.9% higher total organic carbon (TOC) with 31.9, 31.8, 32.0, and 32.1% higher very labile, labile, less labile, and non-labile C fractions, respectively, than RR plots. Moreover, trash incorporation with Trichoderma inoculation treatment improved soil respiration, soil microbial biomass carbon, soil microbial biomass N, and soil protein by 38.4, 20.1, 45.2, and 31.1%, respectively, as compared to trash mulching without Trichoderma. Similarly, RI + T treatment recorded higher C sequestration rate (0.89 Mg ha⁻¹ year⁻¹) and C sequestered (3.56 Mg ha⁻¹). Significantly higher dehydrogenase activity (19.8%) and alkaline phosphatase activity (28.0%) were observed in RI + T treatment as compared to RM treatment. Thus, trash incorporation with Trichoderma is recommended for higher soil C sequestration and soil health for sustained sugarcane–ratoon productivity.

Sugarcane juice (SJ), known for its rich nutrients, faces challenges in processing and marketing due to rapid spoilage by microbes and enzymes. This study aimed to develop techniques to extend the shelf life of SJ. We investigated optimizing SJ’s pH to 4.00 using different acids. Based on sensory tests, orthophosphoric acid (OPA) was chosen as the most acceptable acidulant. The pH-adjusted juice was then heated at various temperatures (50–90 °C). Heating at 90 °C significantly reduced a spoilage enzyme (PPO activity) compared to untreated juice. Pasteurization time at 90 °C was further optimized to 15 min based on PPO activity and microbial control. The final preservation method involved preheating pH-adjusted juice (with OPA) to 60 °C, followed by hot filling into pre-sterilized bottles and pasteurization at 90 °C for 15 min. This method ensured juice quality and storage stability. Storage studies showed that the pH-adjusted and pasteurized SJ maintained good quality for three months under various storage conditions. This study demonstrates the potential of this technology for efficient SJ storage and utilization, opening doors for commercial applications.

Leaf scald is one of the major bacterial diseases causing severe losses to the sugarcane industry. Utilizing disease-resistant genotypes has proved to be the safest, most economical, and effective method to control it. Therefore, we evaluated leaf scald disease (LSD) on 166 sugarcane genotypes in a field trial over three years (2019–2021). We found that the disease incidence and severity varied among genotypes, and the percentage of diseased genotypes differed significantly across crop seasons. ANOVA analysis revealed that Genotype, Year, and Genotype-by-Year interaction significantly affected LSD occurrence. However, the broad-sense heritability (H_B²) for disease incidence (IC) and severity (DI) over three years was 0.72 and 0.68, respectively, suggesting that genetic factors play an essential role. To better classify the level of disease resistance, we performed cluster analysis using three years of disease incidence and severity; the accuracy of the cluster analysis was verified by discriminant analysis. Of the 166 sugarcane genotypes, 35 (21.08%) were highly resistant, 67 (40.36%) resistant, 24 (14.46%) moderately susceptible, 24 (14.46%) susceptible, and 16 (9.64%) highly susceptible. The total probability of discriminant analysis was 90.36%, indicating that the classification results were relatively accurate. The outcomes of this study provide a scientific basis for breeding and selecting resistant genotypes for commercial cultivation.

Sugarcane is an important industrial crop and an excellent feedstock for bio-energy as an alternate to fossil energy source. Early generation hybrids were developed from the introgression of commercial varieties with wild grass (Saccharum spontaneum) and wild relative (Erianthus spp.) and the resultant hybrids produced higher cane fibre and harvestable biomass than commercial varieties under cultivation. The present study consists of 57 early generation hybrids (31 BMC and 26 BM) derived from interspecific and intergeneric hybridization of commercial sugarcane varieties with Saccharum complex (Saccharum officinarum, S. spontaneum, S. robustum, S. barberi and S. sinense) and Erianthus arundinaceus evaluated in randomized block design (RBD) trials over two consecutive seasons, and significant differences were observed for juice quality, cane parameters, fibre and biomass traits. Significant positive correlation was observed for fresh and dry biomass yield with number of shoots at 120 days and number of millable canes at 360 days. Fibre per cent had shown highly significant positive correlation with dry biomass per cent and dry biomass yield (t/ha). The PCA analysis has revealed that PC1 and PC2 were responsible for 70.33% and 67.99% of variance, respectively, while PC2 and PC3 were responsible for 41.25% and 46.96% of the variance, respectively. Cluster analysis revealed that four hybrids (BMC 6, BMC 17, BMC 25, and BMC 27) of BMC group and six hybrids (BM 5, BM 6, BM 11, BM 12, BM 14, and BM 16) of BM groups were numerically superior for fresh biomass yield (> 240 t/ha) and higher fibre per cent (> 20%) than the energy cane standards SBIEC 11001 and SBIEC 11003, respectively. These clones need further validation before could be exploited for cogeneration and as a parents for development of energy canes through hybridization.

Fulgoraecia melanoleuca (Fletcher) is an important ecto-parasitoid of Pyrilla perpusilla (Walker) nymphs and adults. The study aimed to standardize the augmentative releases of F. melanoleuca life stages (eggs and cocoons) for eco-friendly management of P. perpusilla in sugarcane crop. The releases of F. melanoleuca cocoons (2000, 4000, and 6000 cocoons ha⁻¹) and eggs (0.2, 0.4, and 0.6 million eggs ha⁻¹) were compared with chemical control (chlorpyriphos 20 EC @1500 ml ha⁻¹) and untreated control. Two releases were carried out at monthly interval during 1st week of August and 1st week of September. The pyrilla population decreased progressively with increase in released cocoons (2000, 4000, and 6000 ha⁻¹) and eggs (0.2, 0.4, and 0.6 million ha⁻¹). The augmentative releases play a noteworthy role in increasing the parasitoid count (egg masses, cocoons and adults) in the released plots. Overall, the parasitism (nymph + adult) increased with increase in doses and it was significantly higher when parasitoids were released at higher doses, i.e. 0.6 million eggs ha⁻¹ (52.80%) and 6000 cocoons ha⁻¹ (50.60%). However, chlorpyriphos 20 EC (1500 ml ha⁻¹) was found to be highly detrimental to the parasitoid as no parasitism was observed in insecticide-sprayed plots. In conclusion, two releases of F. melanoleuca parasitoid (0.6 million eggs ha⁻¹ or 6000 cocoons ha⁻¹) at monthly interval (1st week of August and 1st week of September) proved better due to higher parasitism rate, increase in parasitoid population, and reduction in pyrilla population and also rendered higher cane yield and better juice quality. The findings will help in the eco-friendly management of P. perpusilla in sugarcane.