How to Harvest Sugar Cane

Although equipment exists that allows sugar cane farmers to harvest their crops without the aid of workers, harvesting machinery is more likely to damage the sugar cane than human beings are. Sugar cane harvested via machinery must be processed much more quickly due to an accelerated rate of decay. In addition, manual harvesters pick up less debris when gathering sugar cane and less debris means the cane can be processed into higher quality sugar. Any individual hoping to find employment harvesting sugar cane should make sure he is in the best shape possible as sugar cane harvesting is a very physically demanding job.

Things You'll Need

• Machete

Instructions

1. Check the sugar cane crop to make sure the plants are mature and ready to be harvested. Mature sugar cane plants will be around 10 feet high, losing their leaves, and have stalks that are coated with a thick, waxy residue.

2. Use a tractor or grader to dig a wide trench around the sugar cane field. This trench will serve as a fire breaker. You may need to make numerous trips around the field with the equipment in order to create a large enough trench. The size of the trench you need depends on the size of the sugar cane field you are preparing to burn. You want to make sure you have a large enough firebreak to prevent the fire from getting out of control.

3. Set the sugar cane field on fire. This serves to burn all the remaining leaves from the sugar cane stalks and rids the field itself of poisonous snakes and other vermin that could present a hazard to the harvesters. The waxy surface of the sugar cane stalk will protect the plant from fire damage.

4. Obtain a machete or "cane knife" for harvesting. Any sharp, unserrated blade may be used, but the traditional knife for harvesting sugar cane will have a flat, curved blade. The longer the blade is, the less you will need to stoop while harvesting. Not only does this make the work go more quickly, it places less physical strain on your body.

5. Harvest the sugar cane by slicing the stalks close to the ground. Move in rows so that you will easily be able to gather up the sliced stalks when you have finished your row.

6. Gather the stalks and chop or peel off any leaves that still cling to the stalk. The stalk should be free of debris prior to being placed in the collection bin or cart in the sugar cane field.

References

• Methods and Techniques of Sugarcane Harvesting
• "Sugarcane"; Glyn James; 2004

Resources

• Read this Article in Spanish