Agriculture — III: Cash Crops (1) — Question 4

Ratooning is a method of cultivation of sugarcane. In this method, during the first harvest, the sugarcane is cut leaving a little bit of the stalk in the soil with the roots. The stalk soon puts out new shoots or ratoons. The second or any other successive crop obtained from the roots of the leftover crop is called ratoon.

Two advantages of ratooning are-

1. Crop need not be planted again, it saves labour.
2. The ratoon matures early.