Determination of Optimum Harvesting Age for the Existing Sugarcane Varieties at Amibara/Middle Awash Agricultural Development Enterprise, Ethiopia

Abstract

A field experiment was conducted at Amibara/Middle Awash Agricultural Development Enterprise farm in factorial combination of two sugarcane varieties and five harvesting ages in RCBD with five replication to determine the optimum harvesting age for the existing sugarcane varieties on heavy and light soils. The combined analysis over soil types proved significant differences for all parameters considered. Significant variation was observed by main and interaction effect of harvesting age and sugarcane varieties on cane yield, sugar yield, brix percent juice , pol percent and recoverable sugar on both light and heavy soils. The maximum sugar yield ton ha^-1 month^-1 (1.49) and  (1.60) were obtained from the variety B52298 at the harvesting age of 14 months on both light and heavy soils, respectively. since no significant variation is observed among the 14 and 15 months of  harvesting ages and attractive benefit cost ration was observed on light soils there is a possibility of harvesting both B52298 and Nco334 varieties at the age of 14 and 15 months while on heavy soils, there is a tendency to harvest at the range of 14 to 16 months for the variety B52298 and at 15 and 16 months for the variety Nco334 at Amibara situation.

Keywords: harvesting age, sugarcane varieties and soil types