The mission of the Station is to develop high-yielding, disease and stress-tolerant sugarcane cultivars, and also new pathology, soil, crop, and water management technologies that result in improved production efficiency and soil conservation.

The Breeding CRIS (6625-13210-003-00D) supports NP 301 (Plant, Microbial, and Insect Genetic Resources, Genomics and Genetic Improvement) and NP 202 (Soil Resource Management).  True seed is provided to ARS sugarcane development programs at Houma, LA and Canal Point, FL, and the Texas A&M; University breeding program at Weslaco, TX.  Breeding for cold and high water tolerance and disease resistance are key objectives of the breeding program and are being pursued through classical and molecular genetics.  Agronomic practices are being developed that at least sustain profits in the periodically high water tables under which sugarcane is grown in Florida.  Germplasm from a discontinued private variety development program in Florida will be transferred to the ARS program, and will cause an increase in size in early selection stages for 2 years.  The Pathology CRIS (6625-22000-008-00D) supports NP 303 (Plant Diseases) by development and application of improved disease detection and screening techniques for sugarcane diseases and studies of disease epidemiology.  Molecular research has been initiated to associate markers with disease resistance as a means to improve the selection of resistant genotypes.  The Soils CRIS (6625-12130-001-00D) supports NP 202 (Soil Resource Management) by conducting studies that will improve our understanding of microbial degradation of soil organic matter, and by developing water-management practices to reduce this microbial degradation.  Major technology transfer meetings with growers and scientists are held in June and November at the Sugarcane Variety Committee Meeting and at American Society of Sugar Cane Technologists Meeting with members stationed in Florida (October) and Florida, Louisiana, and Texas (June).  A Growers’ Field Day is also held every 2 years at the Station.  The research output of the unit is expected to remain high.  Cultivars that originated as seed at Canal Point are grown on about 90% of the acreage in Florida, 95% in Louisiana, and 100% in Texas.  A critical research gap is that there are no facilities with elaborate water-control capabilities for field testing promising results of breeding, soils, and agronomic research conducted in pots and lysimeters.