Resilience and agronomic performance of promising sugarcane clone in lowland agroecosystems of Indonesia

Abstract

Indonesia must continuously increase sugarcane productivity. This research aimed to determine the potential yields of new sugarcane clones in dryland. The research was conducted in two locations: Kediri at the end of the rainy season for Plant Cane (2018/2019) and Ratoon Cane (2019/2020), and Lamongan early in the rainy season for Plant Cane (2018/2019). Eleven promising clones and two check varieties were planted using bud chips, with five rows per treatment and each row spanning 9 m. The results of this research showed that the clones tested did not produce a sugar yield higher than the two check varieties of PS 881 (12.47 ton/ha) and Bululawang (11.66 ton/ha). However, four clones yielded sugar (11.71-12.40 ton/ha) which was comparable to the check varieties. Among these clones (CW 6535, CW 6222, 386 Soff 1118, and 400 Soff 1132), only CW 6535 and CW 6222 were deemed stable while the other two were labeled as unstable. Before introducing these selected clones as new commercial varieties, it is crucial to verify their performance in diverse agroecosystems.