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Saccharum officinarum

(Purple Sugarcane)

Overview

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Giant grass from New Guinea, introduced to Hawaii by early Polynesian immigrants. Now commercially important to Hawaii as source of export sugar but becoming less so in recent years.

Interesting Facts

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Common Names

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Click on the language to view common names.

Common Names in Danish:

Sukkerrør

Common Names in Dutch:

Suikerriet

Common Names in English:

Purple Sugarcane, Cultivated Sugarcane, Noble Cane, Noble Sugarcane, Sugar Cane, Sugarcane

Common Names in Finnish:

Sokeriruoko

Common Names in French:

Canne à Sucre

Common Names in German:

Zuckerrohr, Zukerrohr

Common Names in Hebrew:

Kaneh

Common Names in Italian:

Canna Da Zucchero, Canna Mele

Common Names in Japanese:

Sato-Kibi

Common Names in Khmer:

´âmpëu

Common Names in Malay:

Teboe, Tebu, Tebu (Indonesia), Tebu Telur

Common Names in Malayalam:

Karimbu, Karimpu

Common Names in Norwegian:

Sukkerrør

Common Names in Portuguese:

Cana, Cana De Açúcar, Cana Do Açúcar, Cana-De-Açúcar, Canna De Assucar

Common Names in Sanskrit:

Ikshava

Common Names in Spanish:

Caña Común, Caña De Azúcar, Caña De Castilla, Caña Dulce, Caña Melar, Caña Sacarina, Cañaduz, Cañamiel

Common Names in Sundanese:

Tiwu

Common Names in Swedish:

Sockerrör

Common Names in Tagalog:

Tubo

Common Names in Vietnamese:

Cây Mía, Mía

Description

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Physical Description

Species Saccharum officinarum

Perennial , forming tall clumps . Culms 3-6 m tall, 2-5 cm in diam., 20-40-noded, solid, nodes glabrous , glabrous below inflorescence. Leaf sheaths glabrous, pilose at mouth ; leaf blades 70-150 × 4-6 cm, usually glabrous, midrib large, white, margins sharply serrate, base rounded , apex acuminate; ligule 2-3 mm, ciliate . Panicle 50-100 cm, axis glabrous but pilose at nodes; racemes 10-25 cm; rachis internodes 3-6 mm, glabrous. Spikelets 3.5-4 mm; callus hairs 2-3 times length of spikelet; lower glume oblong , uniformly firm throughout, buff-colored, back glabrous, margins membranous and ciliate above, apex acuminate; lower lemma oblong-lanceolate, subequal to glumes; upper lemma linear, awnless. Lodicules glabrous. Anthers 3. Fl. and fr. autumn. 2n = 80. [source]

Habit: GraminoidGrowth Form: BunchShape and Orientation: Semi-Erect

Flowers: Bloom Period: Late Winter • Flower Color: White • Flower Conspicuous: Yes

Seeds: Seed Spread Rate: Slow • Seedling Vigor: Low • Fruit/Seed Abundance: Medium • Fruit/Seed Color: Brown • Fruit/Seed Conspicuous: Yes • Cold Stratification Required: No

Foliage: Foliage Color: Green • Foliage Porosity Summer: Dense • Foliage Porosity Winter: Dense • Foliage Texture: Medium • Fall Conspicuous: Yes • Leaf Retention: Yes

Size/Age/Growth

Active Growth Period: Spring and Summer • Growth Rate: Fast. • After Harvest Regrowth Rate: Rapid • Mature Height (feet): 12.0 • Size: 10-12' tall. • Vegetative Spread Rate: Moderate • Lifespan: Lifespan

Habitat

Typically found at an altitude of 0 to 4,653 meters (0 to 15,266 feet).[1]

Biology

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Reproduction

Duration: PerennialCoppice Potential: No • Progagated by Bulbs: No • Propagated by Bare Root: No • Propagated by Container: No • Propagated by Corms: No • Propagated by Cuttings: No • Propagated by Seed: Yes • Propagated by Sod: Yes • Propagated by Sprigs: Yes • Propagated by Tubers: Yes • Fruit/Seed Period Begin: Winter • Fruit/Seed Period End: SpringFruit/Seed Persistence: No

Growth

Soil: Adapted to Medium Textured: Adapted to Medium Textured Soils • Adapted to Coarse Textured Soils: Yes • Anaerobic Tolerance: High • Salinity Tolerance: Medium • Minimum pH: 4.0 • Maximum pH: 7.0 • Fertility Requirement: Medium

Sunlight: Sun Exposure: Full sun . • Shade Tolerance: Intermediate

Moisture: Drought Tolerance: High • Minimum Precipitation: 40 • Maximum Precipitation: 80 • Moisture Use: Medium

Temperature: Minimum Temperature (F): 17°F. • Minimum Frost Free Days: 365 • Cold Hardiness: 8a, 8b, 9a, 9b, 10a, 10b. (map)

Taxonomy

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Notes

Name Status: Accepted Name .

Last scrutiny: 15-Mar-2000

Similar Species

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Members of the genus Saccharum

ZipcodeZoo has pages for 21 species, subspecies, varieties, forms, and cultivars in this genus:

S. alopecuroides (Silver Plume Grass) · S. alopecuroidum (Silver Plumegrass) · S. arundinaceum (Hardy Sugar Cane) · S. baldwinii (Narrow Plumegrass) · S. barberi (Barber's Cane) · S. bengalense (Munj Sweetcane) · S. brevibarbe (Purple Plume Grass) · S. brevibarbe var. brevibarbe (Shortbeard Plumegrass) · S. brevibarbe var. contortum (Shortbeard Plumegrass) · S. coarctatum (Compressed Plumegrass) · S. giganteum (Giant Beardgrass) · S. narenga (Narenga Sugarcane) · S. officinarum (Purple Sugarcane) · S. officinarum var. violaceum (Burgundy-Leaved Sugarcane) · S. officinarum 'Pele's Smoke' (Black Magic Repellent Plant) · S. ravennae (Hardy Pampas Grass) · S. robustum (Robust Cane) · S. sinense (Chinese Cane) · S. spontaneum (Ahlek) · S. 'L99-226' (Sugarcane 'l99-226') · S. 'L99-233' (Sugarcane 'k99-233')

More Info

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Further Reading

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Notes

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Contributors

Data Sources

Accessed through GBIF Data Portal November 28, 2007:

Identifiers

Footnotes

  1. Mean = 935.880 meters (3,070.472 feet), Standard Deviation = 1,803.280 based on 95 observations. Altitude information for each observation from British Oceanographic Data Centre. [back]
Last Revised: 4/19/2012