It’s time to evaluate sugarcane replanting

The most recent statistics indicate that Brazil has produced more than 750 million tons of sugar cane. An annual harvest estimated at around R$54 billion, according to data from the Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics (IBGE). With the first period of the year over, it is time to evaluate the sugarcane field and check its condition, remembering that the crop allows, on average, six consecutive harvests, but there are many cases with more harvests.

Each farmer must analyze the costs of renovating the sugarcane field (including plant cane and ratoon cane) x their current productivity before defining the path to follow. It is important to always keep in mind that Brazil is the world's largest producer of sugar cane and, therefore, always has a lot of power to determine the dynamism of the global market.

If national production is higher than the demand for sugar and ethanol at the moment, there is a risk of international prices falling; If the harvest is smaller – and this, as you know, occurs due to different factors – the price has everything to advance. At this point, the plants adjust the sugar and ethanol production flow according to price trends and the supply x demand balance.

Once the decision to reform the sugarcane field has been made, crop rotation appears to be an important ally, as it maintains soil cover and contributes to improving its physical, chemical and biological properties. Soy, peanuts and Crotalaria juncea These are “green manures” increasingly used for this process of “resting” the soil.

Experts recommend some precautions to avoid making mistakes when renovating the sugarcane field. Among these points of attention are the choice of the sugarcane variety that best suits the characteristics of the region and the soil – in fact, it is very important to analyze the land; carry out the renovation in parts and not on 100% of the area at the same time. Rest assured that this facilitates the management and normal development of the plants.

In this scenario, the planting system of Meiosi (Inter rotational Method Occurring Simultaneously) and pre-sprouted seedlings (MPB) is gaining more and more importance, due to the gains it offers (lower operational costs, sugarcane with faster development and more health and greater molting volume).

Embrapa informs that “the most common system for using crops in rotation or reform involves operations such as: removing the sugarcane, destroying the ratoon, liming, preparing the soil, planting the annual crop, harvesting and replanting the sugarcane, immediately afterwards. ”. Therefore, it is a laborious but important process.

Special attention must also be given to weed management! In this case, it is necessary to carefully select the input to be used. “Give preference to suppliers with a history of providing high quality services and products, resulting from the most modern technology available”, highlights Luciano Almeida, agronomist, specialist in business management and marketing supervisor for sugarcane and forests at UPL Brasil.

The use of biostimulants increasingly contributes to the success of planting, which contribute to accelerating the physiological development of plants, increasing the CEC (Cation Exchange Capacity) of the soil, improving rooting, increasing the absorption of water and nutrients by plants, as well as improving resistance to water stress and the residual effects of herbicides in the soil, increasing sugarcane tillering and its longevity, in addition to reducing failures, providing increased productivity and consequent cost reduction.

Increased productivity is directly linked to the use of new technologies. They are there to help farmers obtain better results in their crops. “The better the nutrition program, the greater the expected productivity”, says the professor. Gaspar Korndorfer, from the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU).

“We are in a situation where the profit margin for the use of inputs, such as fertilizers and physioactivators, is quite positive. With available technologies it is perfectly possible to boost productivity, but to do so we need to provide nutrients in adequate quantities and at the right time, in addition to using biostimulants. Just like fertilizers, physioactivators can contribute to the sugarcane nutrition program. With the development of biotechnology (molecular biology), biochemistry and plant physiology, it was possible to synthesize and obtain new molecules, with proven phytonic effects, which can offer protection against many biotic and abiotic effects in plants. Biostimulants are signaling molecules, naturally present in plants in very low concentrations, capable of influencing the hormonal activity of plants, responsible for marked effects on plant development”, explains the UFU specialist.