How to grow sugar cane – expert advice on a tropical grass that’s more than just sweet

Sugar cane (Saccharum officinarum), a tropical perennial grass native to Papua New Guinea and Southeast Asia, is one of the world’s most important economic food and energy crops. Its soaring stalks also make quite an impression in the home landscape where heirloom varieties in all the colors of the rainbow add both beauty and functionality to the garden.

Not in a tropical environment? Sugar cane can grow anywhere with warm summers. Its extremely fast growth allows you to plant a segment of sugar cane in spring and see a 15-foot tall stand of the grass by summer’s end. While it’s mostly known for its commercial applications, the sugar cane plant is a useful element in the garden as a privacy screen, wind break and garden bed focal point.

And yes, you can even harvest its stalks for juicing at home. If you are looking for new vegetable garden ideas, sugar cane is an exciting and feasible crop for many home gardeners. Not only can sugar cane produce a harvest, but it can also be that protective wind barrier your garden needs during stormy weather. Our sugar cane experts share how the plant can be used in the landscape and best methods for planting and ongoing care.

How to grow sugar cane

Sugar cane is a clumping grass believed to have first been cultivated in New Guinea. Its tropical origins don’t limit its growth to those sultry conditions, however. Growing in regions with sub-freezing temperatures is possible.

'I recommend growing it in large pots,' says Christian Kammerer, Agronomic Extension Agent with the University of Florida. 'If you do have a cold day, bring it into a protected space, so the plant doesn't crash from the cold.'

It's a fairly easy plant to grow, too. 'It's vegetatively grown on a commercial level, and that’s the way I would grow it, as well,' Christian says. It’s as easy as cutting the stalks into short segments and planting.

'The stalks have nodes, and the bud coming off of that node is the growing point. That's where the plant will sprout from.' Christian goes on to say that one segment can grow into a 15- to 20-foot-tall plant within one year.

Growing habits of sugar cane

According to Noa Kekuewa Lincoln, Associate Researcher in the Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences Department at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa, heirloom sugarcane varieties have some very striking features.

'When most people think of sugar cane, all they've ever seen is the hybrid cane, which looks like a big grass,' Noa says. 'A lot of the heirloom varieties are banded, so they're striped with colors like apple green and fuchsia. They are really beautiful and just so unique.'

Noa describes some heirloom varieties such as ‘Buddha Belly’, a cane from Papua New Guinea that develops large, rounded nodes that look like a string of Christmas balls. Another variety, ‘Lehu’, is covered with short, soft, silvery hairs and a heavy wax bloom that make it look like a giant crayon.

These color and character variations make heirloom sugar cane a distinctive element in perennial garden beds in USDA zones 9-10, or in large pots in cooler climates.

'Ko (the Hawai’ian name for sugar cane) has many uses in the ornamental landscape,' says Andy Kaufman, Associate Professor and Landscape Specialist in the Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences Department at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. 'It provides vertical elements with its informal structure, which can be utilized as barriers, mass plantings, focal points, and so on. With different varieties, it can add splashes of color and texture within the landscape’s composition.'

As far as obtaining sugar cane for growing at home, both Noa and Christian say varieties are available both through nurseries in Florida. You can also find sugar cane root stock from Amazon.

Christian Kammerer

Christian Kammerer is an extension agent working for the University of Florida's Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

Noa Kekuewa Lincoln

Noa Kekuewa Lincoln is an Associate Researcher in the Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences Department at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa. His work focuses on traditional agricultural development pathways and management strategies. He is the author of Ko: An Ethnobotanical Guide to Hawaiian Sugarcane Cultivars.

Andy Kaufman

Andy Kaufman, Associate Professor and Landscape Specialist in the Tropical Plant and Soil Sciences Department at the University of Hawai’i at Manoa.

Care guide for sugar cane

• Planting: 'Plant a lot deeper than you’d think you should,' Noa suggests. 'Dig a trench about 18 inches deep and then lay a 1- to 2-foot seed cutting at the bottom of that trench. Don't fill the trench all the way up, but you can bury the cane, and the sprouts will push through those few inches. Over time, that hole will fill in. This really anchors the plant in well, because you're going to have 15 to 20 stalks that are 8- to 15-feet tall. If you don't anchor the whole clump it’ll fall over from its own weight.'
• Soil: 'They're pretty forgiving as far as soil type,' Noa says. 'Anything from well-draining to clay soils they’ll do quite well in.'
• Light: 'It definitely likes full sun,' Noa explains. 'In the shade, they get really spindly and stretch, and you won't get as many stalks, so it won't fill out nicely. They’ll get so tall they can't support themselves, so they’ll droop.'
• Watering: 'Sugar cane is generally water loving, but they're actually surprisingly drought resistant, so they can persist in pretty dry conditions,' Noa says. 'They’ll definitely flourish, the more water you're able to give them.'
• Fertilizing: 'If you're not growing for production, I wouldn't worry too much about [fertilizing],' Noa advises. 'It’s a grass, so just think about lawn care, which generally takes higher nitrogen and lower phosphorus and potassium. They'll respond well to that kind of fertilization.'
• Pruning: 'You really do need to remove stalks as they mature,' Noa advises. This helps prevent the clump from spreading (see FAQ below).
• Pests: Noa says aphids such as the yellow leaf aphid, other sucking insects, and boring beetles can be problematic, especially for the heirloom varieties which have softer rinds than commercial hybrids.

FAQs

How can you harvest sugar cane for eating?

'On a minimal level, you can cut the cane and chew it,' says Christian. 'What some people will do is grind it and then boil off that juice into a syrup that you can add to teas and other drinks. You just need a grinder, which you can find on Amazon, and use it to extract the liquid.'

Is sugar cane invasive?

In short, no. 'Sugar cane has a very low fertility, so it doesn't propagate well by seed,' Noa explains. 'It's not going to start popping up in the garden. What does happen is, if you don't maintain the clump, the stalks will fall over and can root to create a new clump.'

Noa’s experience with sugar cane is extensive and says the history of the crop and its spread around the globe is fascinating. You can read more about his work with heirloom sugar cane on the University of Hawai’i’s Sugar Cane site.

If sugar cane has piqued your interested in growing other tropical crops, try your hand at cultivating the nutty and nutrient-rich roots of cassava, a staple crop in South America, Asia and Africa.