Ruth Rhodes (Extension Specialist, Zululand South) and Jan Erasmus (Extension Specialist, Malelane)

17th November 2025

Planting, fertilising and weeding leave growers with little time for much else during this season; here are a few things to keep in mind during the quieter moments…

 

  • Make final carryover decisions.
  • Attend to weed control.
  • Keep on top of smut roguing.
  • Consider your approach to yellow sugarcane aphid (YSA) control, and plan accordingly.
  • Prepare volunteer-free replant fields for 2026.

Final Harvests and Carryover Decisions

  • Try not to be caught with unplanned carryover fields.
  • Flowering was excessive this season, and if you still have any fields with > 20% flowering, try by all means to harvest them before the mill closes.
  • In addition, harvest any fields that may become eldana problems during the off season. Don’t be caught with eldana-infested cane in the off-crop! Your local Biosecurity teams can inspect any fields you are not sure about.

Weed Control

  • Your farm may be closing down for the year-end break within the next six weeks or so. Pay attention to weed control, especially on recently planted/ratooning fields. Don’t give your January self a headache with tall, hard-to-control weeds!
  • Follow up on problem weeds, particularly creeping grasses.
  • In longer-cycle cane, monitor winter weeds in last season’s cane.

Prepare your Replant Fields for 2026

  • Start planning your replant fields:
    • Spray off your fields when the cane has reached knee height
    • Remember that your 2026 farm nursery fields need to be free of volunteers for 6-9 months – if you’re going to replant in Sept 2026, you need to have killed your last volunteer by January 2026.
  • For commercial replant fields, plan for a volunteer-free fallow of at least 3 months.
    Check the effectiveness of chemical stool eradication. In sugarcane, nobody loves a volunteer!
  • In high mosaic risk areas (e.g. KZN midlands), don’t plant between 1 November and 1 February.
  • Contact your seedcane provider: orders for 2026 should be submitted this year. Don’t be caught without a seedcane source in spring 2026.

Pests & Diseases

  • Use manual or chemical roguing to clean smut-infested fields. The Link September-October 2025 gives practical information on roguing methods.
  • Summer is YSA season. Give your control programme careful thought: some growers may favour environmental manipulation or trying to increase numbers of natural predators, while others may lean more towards a spray programme. Either way, be informed; contact your extension specialist or chemical rep for advice.
  • Malelane / Komati: be on the lookout for outbreaks of Black Maize Beetle, as happened in 2023. Contact SASRI Biosecurity (P&D) if you have any queries.

General Husbandry and Maintenance

  • Now is a good time to plant a summer green manure crop.
  • Leaf sampling season begins soon. Follow the guidelines in Information Sheet 7.15 Sugarcane Leaf Sampling or in our video and test your leaves for nutrient sufficiency, or to investigate patches of poor growth.
  • A tour of the farm during heavy rain is the best way of observing weaknesses in field layouts and where maintenance to roads and structures is required.
  • Start planning your programme for next season.
  • Consider staff training: do your staff require Health & Safety supervisors’ courses, chemical operator or tractor driver refresher training? Contact Shukela Training Centre for more information www.shukelatrainingcentre.co.za.

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