Sugar Research Australia (SRA) has just released new hard-copy publications that provide detailed information for growers and millers on sugarcane varieties that they may wish to plant on their properties.

The 2016 variety guides contain specific local information that is applicable to the needs of all sugarcane regions in Australia. Publications that have been created are: Southern and NSW; Burdekin and Central; and Herbert and Northern.

SRA Adoption Officer Mr Roderick Fletcher said the purpose of the guides was to provide growers and millers with detailed information about sugarcane varieties, to help them make the decisions about what varieties may suit their conditions, and other requirements.

“Breeding new sugarcane varieties is the single largest focus area that SRA invests in for growers and millers,” Mr Fletcher said.

“These guides provide useful information on agronomic considerations when selecting new varieties to plant and trial. The information comes from the best available data of regional variety performance and disease ratings.

“When growers are looking at new varieties, a key question they want information about is how it will perform on their farm.

“How much sugar might these varieties produce? Are they resistant to diseases?  Are they suited to my soils?
“These are all topics that the guides provide more information about, based on the best available information from trials and local advisory services observations.”

Far North Queensland sugarcane grower Len Parisi said he was a keen reader of all published information on varieties so that he could make informed decisions about what varieties to plant.

He said that good information, such as that provided in the Variety Guides, was vital to help inform decisions. As well as new varieties that have been approved for release for Far North Queensland, SRA6 and SRA7, Mr Parisi also said that the main varieties on his list to plant also included Q240, Q241, Q242, Q245, Q246 and Q247.

“I am very happy with the new varieties. It is hard to get new varieties to work properly for everybody, but the research into them has been spot on, and SRA are doing very well,” he said.

“Not all varieties will work for everyone and we all have to take new varieties on board and use them in our area and see what is suitable.

“I have a lot of soil types from high range granite gravels to river flats, so there is not one variety that suits all of my conditions. So I make sure I read all the material that comes out, attend events, talk to the plant breeders, and then work out what I want for my property.”

Further information on varieties and farm planning is available via SRA’s free online tool, QCANESelect, which provides comprehensive information to maximise productivity from variety selection.