Sugarcane--Physiology

    Sugarcane is an annual crop and is grown in varied agro climatic zones in India. it is the main source of sugar in the country. It has few distinct growth phases viz., Germination phase(0-60 days), Tillering phase (60-150 days), Grand growth phase (150-240 days) and maturity phase (240- 360 days). sugarcane is regarded as a hardy crop.

The growth phases and what they signify......

Germination phase:  The period starting from  the day of planting of setts, till the completion of germination, is called germination phase. The germination process is governed by  

                                                    several internal and environmental factors.  Soil moisture temperature and soil salinity are major external factors, while age of the sett and healthy bud are important internal factors.

Tillering Phase: An important phase during which maximum tillers are produced and identified as most sensitive stage for moisture stress. Copious water supply during this phase ensures good tillering and fairly good field stand. Water stress at this stage reduces tiller production , consequently cane and sugar yield.

Grand growth phase:

The elongation of internodes and cane height for fuller sink size is achieved during this phase. It signifies the higher metabolic activity in terms of sucrose synthesising and other related enzymes.

Maturity Phase:

    Cane maturing for harvest implies the ultimate sucrose accumulation and total biomass. At the completion of the phase most of the metabolic activity reduce to a minimum to reduce the expenditure of sucrose to a minimum level.