Potassium nutrition for improving stubble bud sprouting, dry matter partitioning, nutrient uptake and winter initiated sugarcane (Saccharum spp. hybrid complex) ratoon yield

A field experiment was conducted for two crop cycles during 2003–2005 and 2004–2006 at Indian Institute of Sugarcane Research, Lucknow to improve bud sprouting, dry matter accumulation (DMA), nutrient uptake and ratoon yield by using potassium fertilizer. Potassium (K) fertigation in standing plant cane increased the number of buds per stubble and number of stalks in ratoon cane. K content of stubble increased by 16.7% with K fertigation. The content of reducing sugars in buds at the time of ratoon initiation improved significantly with K fertigation. It improved dry matter accumulation, number of millable canes, individual cane weight, ratoon cane and sugar yields. Thus, it could be concluded that application of 66 kg K ha−1 with irrigation water in standing plant cane before harvest improved bud sprouting, dry matter accumulation and nutrient uptake in ratoon crop. Irrigation in standing plant cane increased ratoon cane (69.9 t ha−1) and sugar yields (7.6 t ha−1). This increase for ratoon cane and sugar yield was 8.7 and 5.55%, respectively over the control. Further, it increased ratoon cane yield by 15.21% (74.1 t ha−1) and sugar yields by 13.9% (8.2 t ha−1) with K fertigation over the control. Thus, K nutrition holds great promise for improving growth of ratoon cane and sugar yields.