THE BUD AND THE ROOT AS FUNDAMENTAL FACTORS IN SUCCESSFUL STUBBLE CANE PRODUCTION

K.Y.Chou (Fukien Agricultural College)

An investigation,on the bud and the root with regard to the stubble cane and its pro-duction,had been carried out,during the years 1961 and 1962 in Fukien province,and thepreliminary results were summarized briefly as follows:1.By employing the radio-active element p32 as a tracer,it was shown that the old rootsystem of the stubble was capable of absorption early in the growing season.In so doing,the stubble cane was able to make an earlier start in growth than that of the newly plantedcane.(See tables 1 to 3).2.We found that permanent roots appeared on the ratoon,soon after its emergence fromthe stubble cane,while,in contrast,the newly planted cane produced only permanent rootsafter it possessed two true leaves.The ability of the ratoon to produce permanent roots de-pended on the number of bud scales.Usually,the more the number of scales,the earlier andbetter production of permanent roots.(See tables 4 to 5).3.The number of bud scales on buds appearing at different nodes on the same cane wasfound to be different,being more at the basal portion,and decreasing in number toward thedistal end.Likewise,the number of scales on an opened bud was found to be higher thanthose of the unopened ones on the same node in different cane.(See tables 9 to 12).4.New canes arising from buds occurring on the basal portion up to a height fivecentimeters of the residual stock were larger,more vigorous and constituted the effectivecanes in crop production.It was further shown,that the crowded nodes,often enveloped inthe scales of the residual stock,were able to differentiate normal and healthy buds.Themanner and time of the formation of these buds remained as problems to be studied later.(See taables 6 to 8).5.We would like to stress the fact that the performance of the buds and the roots forthe stubble canes referred to above as important factors in sugar cane production,wasintimately linked up with the external factors including cultural operations.The productionof earlier,more and stouter canes was often influenced by a number of cultural treatmentsthey received during the previous season.Among these cultural treatments,we listed thefollowings:(1) harvesting of canes properly conducted;(2) good care and protection ofstubbles through the winter;(3) proper cultivation and preparation of cane beds during earlyspring;(4) adequate fertilization,cultivation and irrigation of the preceding crops;and (5)chemical and biological control measures of pests and diseases well executed.(See tables 13to 28).