Late Season Sugarcane Genotype as Affected by Irrigation Water Deficit at the Yield Formation Stage in Ferké, North-Eastern Ivory Coast

Abstract

A field trial was carried out in Ferké 2 Sugar mill plantations located in northeastern Ivory Coast, in order to study sugarcane growth and yield response to irrigation water deficit imposed over the yield formation stage. A non-flowering late-season sugarcane variety (Co957) was used as first ratoon crop. The experimental design was a randomized complete block with 4 water deficit treatments in 3 replicates. It came out that the optimum water deficit was 20% of normal watering treatment. That treatment gave a water use efficiency of 7.9 kg cane/m³ corresponding to 0.98 kg sugar/m³. Lower crop growth rates (0.2-0.4 cm/day) and cane yields (24.5-78.4 t/ha) were obtained due to a persistent dry season which occurred over the yield formation stage. In line of prevailing climatic conditions, cane juice quality measured was particularly high on the variety used, which performance is known as moderate under Ferké 2 farming conditions.