Sugarcane: History and Cultivation of Sugarcane

In this article we will discuss about:- 1. History of Sugarcane 2. Cultivation of Sugarcane 3. Cane Sugar.

History of Sugarcane:

Charaka wrote the oldest treatise extant on Hindu medicine, at about the beginning of the Christian era. The glossary of Sanskrit names in this work denotes an intimate knowledge with the various forms and preparations of sugar which is considerately more than 2000 years old.

The term Sarkara appears to have given origin not only to the Arabic, Persian, Greek and Latin classic names, but to the extensive assortment of words in the modern languages of India and Europe which are every nearly the direct equivalents of the English word sugar.

However, there are several sources of information that carry the Hindu knowledge in cane-sugar considerably further back than can perhaps be shown for any other country. The sugar-cane plant and the cane-sugar are frequently mentioned in the Institutes of Manu. The more generally accepted view is that these Institutes were begun two or three centuries before the advent of Christ.

It may thus be safely accepted that the reference to a field of sugar-cane, in Manusmriti, is more than 2000 years old. It may thus be accepted that sugar-cane was very generally cultivated in India, during the time the Institutes of Manu were written. It is thus probable that sugar-cane has been cultivated in India for at least 3,000 years.

The culms of the wild species such as Saccharunt arundinaceum (of Deccan) and spontaneum (of Kar-Nicobar) yield a certain amount of saccharine fluid, and it may be possible that one of these wild forms might have given origin to the sugar-cane, the cultivation of 3,000 years having destroyed its original specific characteristics.

In the Ain-i-Akbari a description of the methods of cultivation, manufacture of all forms of sugar, and the distillation of spirits from it, is being given in detail.

The Spaniards carried the cultivation and manufacture of sugar-cane to the Canary Islands in the fifteenth century, but prior to that in 1420 the Portuguese had conveyed it from Sicily to Madeira and to St. Thomas Island. In 1506 it was taken from the Canary Islands to San Domingo.

The Dutch first established sugar works in Brazil in 1580, and then they carried the art of sugar manufacture to the West Indies in 1655. Sugar was manufactured by the English in Barbadoes in 1643 and in Jamaica in 1664. Sugar-cane was first introduced into the United States of America in Louisiana in 1741.

It is grown chiefly in Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, South India (especially Coimbatore) and the Punjab. The Indo-Gangetic belt previously grew mostly thin canes {Saccharum barberi Jeswiet). These are popularly known as Indian canes, have been extensively cultivated in the country for a long time. They are characterized by high fibre and an intermediate sucrose content.

In the peninsular belt the thick canes (Saccharum officinarum Linn.) are the chief types. They have all the desirable agronomic and milling qualities. They are characterized by a thin rind and are low in fibre and high in sucrose content. The greatest landmark in the sugar industry is the evolution of improved canes in India.

Ever since its inception in 1912 the Sugarcane Breeding Institute at Coimbatore has been engaged in the evolution of improved varieties for the sub-tropical regions of India and since 1926 for the tropical regions also. Its programme of hybridization has included various species of Saccharum and related genera.

The improved Coimbatore canes now occupy 93% of the sugarcane area in India. They have increased the yields by at least 50%, some of the improved types are: Co. 213, Co. 290, Co. 312, Co. 313, Co. 419, Co. 421, Co. 453, Co. 527, Co. 658, Co. 997, and Co. 1148. Of these, Co. 419 yields from 40 to 90 tons of cane per acre and contains 13 to 16% sugar.

The sugar industry in India is the second largest industry in the country, next only in importance to cotton textiles. The chief source of sugar is the sugarcane.

This plant is a rapid growing perennial grass, which reaches a height in cultivation of 8 to 12 feet or more and a diameter of about 2 inches. It grows in clumps. The stem is solid with a tough rind and numerous fibrous strands and contains about 10% of juice, the sugar content of which varies greatly.

The commercial sugarcane is not known in a wild state. By 327 B.C. the sugarcane had become an important crop in India. The name “sugar” comes from the Sanskrit “sarkara”, meaning gravel, and refers to the crude sugar.

Breeding for effective utilization of sunlight throughout the year:

Sugarcane being a C. 4 plant has a very efficient photosynthetic system. Many of the tropical sugarcane varieties take 14 to 18 months from planting to harvest. This long duration also leads to sugar factories remaining idle for considerable periods. Hence, a breeding programme was initiated at the Sugarcane Breeding Institute, Coimbatore for selection of early ripening canes.

Some of the cultures give good sugar recovery and yield in about 8 months. The production system with early ripening canes can be made even more efficient with the help of chemical ripeners. Such strains can enable either taking 3 crops (one main and two ratoon) of sugar cane in 2 years or promoting rice-sugarcane (with sugarcane planting in early autumn) and wheat-sugarcane (with sugarcane planting in late spring) rotations.

By properly distributing the areas under spring and autumn planting the sugarcane crushing period can be considerably extended. In trials carried out at the Sugarcane Breeding Station, Coimbatore one variety recorded in 1977 about 19% sucrose with 88% purity in 240 days.

During 1978 also, trials with short duration varieties gave over 18% sucrose in juice at 7 months, whereas the mid-season variety used as control recorded only 12.5% sucrose at that time. country. Crop harvest is seen in the picture in Meerut.

Cultivation of Sugarcane:

The sugarcane is propagated by cuttings of various sizes made from upper joints of old canes. These cuttings known as seed, are placed in trenches and nearly covered with soil. They begin to sprout in two weeks. The crop is harvested from 10 to 20 months after sprouting.

The stems are cut close to the ground for the lower end of the cane is richest in sugar. The rhizomes will normally give rise to two or three more crops, known as ratoons before another planting is necessary. The canes are brought to the sugar mills by rail road or any available means of transportation.

Cane Sugar:

Cane sugar has been known from early days and its crude form was separated from cane juice. India has been the chief producer of cane-sugar from time immemorial. Later on other countries like Java, Cuba, Philippines, etc., also started producing sugar and they contributed towards the development of better techniques for the production of refined sugar.

The main sources of sugar are sugarcane and beet. In cold countries like Russia where beet is in abundance, it is extracted from beet. In tropical countries like India it is mostly obtained from sugarcane. Indian cane contains about 12-13% of sugar.