Effect of stage of maturity, cultivar, nitrate fertilization, soil type on mineral content of sugarcane

The effect of the stage of maturity, cultivar, nitrate fertilization and soil type on the mineral content of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum L.) was determined in Guadeloupe in two experiments. The calcium, phosphorus, sulfur, magnesium, sodium, potassium, zinc, copper, manganese and molibdenum contents of tops, stalks and whole plants were determined in sugarcane of 14 cultivars at two stages of maturity (8 vs. 12 mo) in an experiment in an acid soil area. The procedures were repeated in a second experiment in a calcareous soil area with two cultivars (B 69379 vs. B 744708) and three nitrate fertilization levels (80, 150, 300 kg N/ha/yr). The mean Ca, P,S, Mg, Na, K contents of whole plants were 1.27, 1.86, 1.88, 0.89, 0.20, 5.87 g/kg dry matter (DM), respectively, in experiment 1. The mean Zn, Cu, Mn, Mo contents of whole plants were 17.2, 1.8, 89.2 and 0.4 mg/kg BM, respectively, in experiment 1. The mineral contents of tops were generally higher than those of stalks. Nitrate fertilization and stage of maturity had little effect on the mineral content of sugarcane.