HoCP 96-540

HoCP 96-540 was the second most widely grown variety in 2020. The variety has provided growers with excellent yield potential, good response to ripeners and excellent cold tolerance and rebounds well from drought conditions. The disease package is good, with the exception being brown rust. Budget for a fungicide application — it pays. The variety is hard to beat when planted on your best land. HoCP 96-540’s weakness is stubbling ability, especially when harvested under wet conditions and following a severe freeze. Poor stubble stands can lead to increased grass pressure and lower yields. Growers were glad to have HoCP 96-540 after the freeze of Nov. 13, 2019.

To manage risk in HoCP 96-540, it should occupy 10%-15% of your farm’s acreage.

L01-283

L 01-283 has good sugar per acre, erectness, excellent stubbling ability and cold tolerance. Naturally occurring off-types began appearing in the variety soon after release. High levels of off-types can decrease sugar per acre in L 01-283. Off-types are stress induced. Keep the variety on your sandier land to decrease the percentage of off-types. L 01-283 overwinters well, and early spring and summer growth is impressive. Good and early sugar and tonnage in the variety make it a good choice for early harvest. Watch for late season brown rust and borer infestations. Budget for a fungicide to control rust — it pays.

Keep planted acreage around 5% and on your best land. L 01-283 is not for everyone, but it is a major variety for some growers because of superior stubbling ability and early maturity.

L01-299

L 01-299 was released in 2009 and is the leading variety grown in the state. The appeal is high tonnage and a long crop cycle because of superior stubbling ability. L 01-299 is the best heavy land cane that this industry has ever produced. L 01-299 has resistance to the sugarcane borer and brown rust. Watch for smut, which is more prevalent in plant cane and tends to decrease in older stubble crops. L 01-299 possesses a level of field resistance to smut. Consider first stubble as a seed cane source. L 01-299 is susceptible to the disease brown stripe, which is at its highest level early in the growing season. The variety is slow to emerge after planting and should not be covered too deeply. In recent years, the variety has struggled to reestablish after being cut for seed cane. Try treating your seed cane like a spring crop after planting — cultivate, apply herbicide and put out a starter fertilizer. L 01-299 responds well to glyphosate ripeners. Because of its high tonnage and tolerance to glyphosate, many growers have used higher rate ranges of glyphosate for ripening. L 01-299 will be widely planted in 2021.

Keep the planted acreage of L 01-299 near 50% or less.

HoCP 04-838

HoCP 04-838 was released in 2011 and has a very good disease package, good harvesting characteristics and resistance to the sugarcane borer. Most importantly, HoCP 04-838 has superior cold tolerance. The variety is like HoCP 96-540 in that it has been planted primarily on light soils. Yield in older stubble crops has been erratic — the variety does not take drought well. HoCP 04-838 makes a good stand of cane, but that does not always translate into yield in the stubble crops. Position the variety for late harvest to take advantage of its excellent cold tolerance. Numerous cold tolerance tests show that HoCP 04-838 has the slowest rate of juice deterioration after a freeze. At harvest, clean the variety aggressively to help lower its fiber content.

HoCP 04-838 should be planted in areas scheduled for late harvest as part of managing your harvest for early freezes.

HoCP 09-804

Released in 2016, HoCP 09-804 has a high population of small diameter stalks. The variety has excellent yield potential and high sucrose content. HoCP 09-804 possesses moderate cold tolerance. The stubbling ability of HoCP 09-804 is very good. Stands were excellent following the freeze of mid-February 2021. Growers have seen better performance in lighter soil types. HoCP 09-804 is moderately susceptible to brown rust and brown stripe. The variety is early maturing and responds well to the ripener glyphosate. Manage mosaic and other diseases through a healthy seed program. HoCP 09-804 is a good choice to replace other early maturing varieties such as HoCP 00-950 and L 01-283.

It is recommended to plant 20% of your acreage with HoCP 09-804.

L 11-183

In 2018, L 11-183 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. The variety was derived from a cross between HoCP 92-624 and LCP 85-384. L 11-183 has a moderate population of larger diameter stalks. Its rolling canopy and broad leaves provide good shading. The variety has good yield potential, good sucrose content and fair stubbling ability. L 11-183 has moderate cold tolerance based on recent freeze tests. The variety is better adapted to lighter soils. L 11-183 is susceptible to brown rust but is resistant to the other major diseases of sugarcane. The variety will lodge. The variety did not stubble well after the freeze of mid-February 2021.

Acreage of L 11-183 should be kept at 5% or less.

L 12-201

In 2019, L 12-201 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. The variety was derived from a cross between L 97-128 and HoCP 96-540. L 12-201 has a moderate population of larger diameter stalks. This variety has excellent yield potential and good sucrose content. L 12-201 has a good disease package. Caution: Its leaf sheaths have spines (hairs) much like LCP 85-384, its grandparent. The variety is very susceptible to both the sugarcane borer and Mexican rice borer. In a freeze tolerance test conducted in 2019, the variety rated as poor for cold tolerance.

L 12-201 should be planted on 5% of acreage in 2021. Keep in mind the cold tolerance and insect ratings as you place the variety on the farm.

Ho 12-615

In 2019, Ho 12-615 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. Ho 12-615 has a high population of small diameter stalks. The variety was derived from a cross between TucCP 77-42 (from Argentina) and HoCP 96-540. The variety has excellent cane tonnage and sucrose content like L 01-299. The variety stubbles well, but there were some seed cane fields that had poor stands in 2021. The variety has an excellent disease package. You will see some brown stripe in the spring. Ho 12-615 has a dark green and erect canopy. The leaves will turn purplish after cool weather. In a freeze tolerance test conducted in 2019, the variety rated as poor for cold tolerance.

Ho 12-615 should be planted on 20% of your acreage in 2021. Keep in mind the cold tolerance rating as you place fields on your farm.

Ho 13-739

In 2020, Ho 13-739 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. Ho 13-739 has a moderate population of larger diameter stalks. The variety was derived from a cross between Ho 06-9610 and HoCP 04-838. The variety has good yield potential and high sucrose content, like HoCP 09-804. The variety has an excellent disease package, and early test performances place this variety for sandier soil types. Ho 13-739 has a dark green and erect canopy. Based on one cold tolerance test conducted in 2019, the variety rated as moderate-good, which is encouraging. Early maturity and high sucrose are important characteristics for this variety.

Begin to learn about Ho 13-739 by planting 2%-3% of your acreage in light soil. Ho 13-739 should be considered in your plan for managing late season freezes.

L 14-267

In 2021, L 14-267 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. L 14-267 has a moderate population of larger diameter stalks. The variety was derived from a cross between HoCP 05-918 and L 01-283. The variety has good yield potential and high sucrose content, like HoCP 09-804. The variety has an excellent disease package and early yield performance indicates adaptability across all soil types. L 14-267 has an erect canopy. Based on one cold tolerance test conducted in 2019, the variety rated as moderate. Everyone should apply for seed cane, which can be obtained from the American Sugar Cane League. See the May 2021 issue of the Sugar Bulletin. Seed cane supply is plentiful.

Plant the initial 2021 seed cane on good land, and then, as always, see what it will do on your tougher ground in subsequent plantings.

HoCP 14-885

In 2021, HoCP 14-885 was released to the Louisiana sugar industry. HoCP 14-885 has a high population of moderate diameter stalks. The variety was derived from a cross between Ho 07-613 and HoCP 05-920. The variety has excellent yield potential and high sucrose content like HoCP 09-804. The variety has an excellent disease package, and early yield performance indicates that HoCP 14-885 is adapted to all soil types. HoCP 14-885 has a spreading and drooping canopy and has vigorous growth, making the variety excellent for shading row middles. Based on one cold tolerance test conducted in 2019, the variety rated as moderate. HoCP 14-885 had excellent sugar and cane yields in second and third stubble yield trials conducted at locations across the cane belt. Its stubbling ability may be comparable to L 01-299. Everyone is highly encouraged to apply for seed cane, which can be obtained from the American Sugar Cane League. See the May 2021 issue of the Sugar Bulletin. Seed cane supply is plentiful.

Plant the initial 2021 seed cane on good land, and then, as always, see what it will do on your tougher ground in subsequent plantings.