Embarking on a journey to cultivate your own edible landscape can be both exhilarating and rewarding. Just as we touched upon in our precursor post, “Kick Start Your Food Security Plot with Foodscaping,” the pursuit of a personal food forest is not just about sustenance but also an adventure in diversity and tasteful delights. Today, we delve into the sweet, towering stalks of sugarcane—a plant that’s as much a garden giant as it is a fountain of sweetness. As I sit here, sharing these words, a pot of my homemade sugarcane molasses bubbles away, sending waves of aromatic sweetness reminiscent of caramel, sugary sweet potatoes, and corn throughout the house, promising not just a treat for the palate, but a sensory experience from our very own garden. Join me as we explore the ins, the outs, and the sticky rich delights of growing sugarcane right in your backyard.
I can’t wait until the sugarcane molasses is ready for tasting, but we are hours away from that pleasure. So onward I go thinking and writing about this rewarding addition to our food plot.
Introducing Sugarcane
Firstly, did you know that sugarcane is actually a perennial flowering grass? It looks like a cross between a corn stalk and bamboo. While, sugarcane and corn both belong to the Poaceae family, neither has any relation to bamboo, outside of the fact that all three are a type of grass.
Unlike corn, you can propagate sugarcane and bamboo via cuttings. A bamboo “culm” is the name of the cutting that you would use to grow a new plant. You plant the culm upright and partially above ground. To learn more about this process Click Here.
Plant sugarcane “seed canes” horizontally at a depth of about six inches beneath the surface of the ground.
Sugarcane is a beautiful addition to your landscape with reaching heights and slender draping leaves that add to its dramatic finesse. It will contribute to the diversity of a landscape having a variety of shrubs, hardscaping and layers of plants with varying leaf shapes and textures.
The canes themselves are smooth and segmented much like bamboo. Planting along a pathway will create a woodsy tunnel of towering grass. The swaying of the graceful leaves in the breeze is a soothing sound as you relax in your backyard.
Growing Zones and Climate
Sugarcane is ideally suited for a tropical to subtropical climate (US Zones 9-11), although it is claimed to be grown as far north as zone 5. Technically, from Tennessee to Florida and across to Texas, is considered to be subtropical.
While this is true, states like Tennessee do not come to mind when picturing the subtropics. We decided to try planting sugarcane anyway, as we have had luck growing other subtropical plants, such as sweet potatoes.
In previous posts, you may recall that I said we have a small campsite up in Tennessee. Last year we brought up some sugar cane segments and planted them as an experiment. They did grow but not to the extent we would have liked. We cut them back in the fall and we will see what comes this year. If you live above zone 10(B) you will need to cut down your sugarcane before the first frost. Or just wait until the frost and let it die down to the ground but why stress the plant if you don’t have to.
Planting Sugarcane
When choosing a site for planting, know that sugarcane loves sun and moist soil. It does not like boggy standing water though, so choose a sunny location with good drainage. Dig a furrow six inches deep. If your soil is pure sand, you can add 8-2-8 fertilizer or garden soil/compost to improve the soil. Our soil was rich and dark from adding leaves, fronds etc. and letting them rot down to mimic the forest floor. Since that was the case, we did not bother fertilizing and, as you can see above, the sugarcane has done very well.
Another way to achieve the soil fertility, moisture, and drainage requirements for this plant would be to plant canes in a mound garden. These particular gardens have good drainage while holding a fair amount of moisture, as well as, woody debris to rot down and make continuous fertilizer for the plants. If you go this route, the planting depth of six inches in a furrow still applies. Planting sugarcane in mounded gardens would create a beautiful living privacy fence and is an excellent opportunity for companion planting.
When choosing a “seed cane,” this is a segment of the cane for planting, make sure there are at least four or more nodes. New shoots come from these nodes, therefore, having multiple nodes yields more opportunities for a new shoot.
Monitor for moisture. If it hasn’t been raining in your area, water the sugarcane planting site two to three times a week as needed. It will most likely take a couple of months before you see an oblong leaf poking through the soil. This is a very exciting day! Before you know it you will have one cane and then another and another until you have a beautiful sugarcane plant.
After 8-12 months, you will have a fully grown plant, like the above, with canes galore that are ready to be harvested.
Prepare the Sugarcane for Processing into Molasses
When selecting your molasses canes, it helps to choose the thickest ones that have the most pulp for processing. Use a sharp knife or loppers to cut the cane into small sections. This will help it to fit into the pot.
Using a sharp knife to start it, carefully peel back the outer layer of the cane piece using your fingers. Do this until all segments are free of the hard outer layer.
Note that some people leave this layer on when making their sugarcane molasses. This method involves slicing the cane segment into long strips. If you go this route, make sure to scrub the outer layer of all dirt and mildew first. You do not want that in your sugarcane molasses! Using soap is not necessary, simply hot water and a scrubber will suffice.
Process the Sugarcane Molasses
Once your sugarcane pieces are peeled you can move onto the next step. Wash them well with hot water.
Fill the pot with water making sure to cover the sugarcane pieces. Bring the water to a boil. Continue boiling the sugarcane for at least two hours. At that point, the water will be sweetened and ready for straining.
Remove the spent segments and let cool before discarding. Be careful these are extremely hot! As is the liquid you will be straining in the next step.
Using a mesh sieve, swatch of plain cotton, or a cheesecloth, strain the liquid to remove any particles. I also used a canning funnel to help guide the liquid into the sieve but that part is optional.
Pour the liquid into a smaller pot and continue boiling with the lid off. This will reduce the liquid portion of the solution and create a syrup, not quite sugarcane molasses yet.
When the sugarcane molasses has thickened to the point where the bubbles are sluggish and the liquid does not slide as smoothly across the pot, you can turn off the heat and let the sugarcane molasses cool.
Carefully pour the sugarcane molasses into a clean jar. Using a sterile jar will reduce potential pathogens making your hard earned sugarcane molasses last longer, refrigerated of course.
That’s pretty straightforward right? I thought the process of making sugarcane molasses would be much more difficult than it really is. The most involved part of the process is that you must stay close by as the liquid reduces in the smaller pot. As your sugar water reduces down it can easily scorch and ruin your batch. After all that effort, you don’t want that!
To wrap up our discussion on creating your very own sugarcane molasses, remember that this process can be both a satisfying culinary journey and a valuable skill in sustainable living. As you undertake this adventure, embrace the trial and error, and let your senses guide you through the crafting of this rich, deep-flavored treasure.
Good luck on your path to mastering homemade molasses, and don’t hesitate to reach out with your stories of success (and delicious mishaps). We’re eager to hear how your food forest flourishes with this sweet, homespun addition. Happy molasses making!
Sources
https://gardeningsolutions.ifas.ufl.edu/plants/edibles/vegetables/sugarcane.html
Great idea! Good article, as usual!