Growing sugar?

[Gooner Mik]

Is it possible to grow sugar on allotment? If so, can it be refined by us mortals? Dont pannick Mr Tate or Lyle, i am just testing the waters.

[Jaxom]

Beets in Britain

I have never heard of anyone growing suger cane in the UK as it is far too cold even with current "Global Warming". I do know that we as a nation grow sugarbeet. How this can be processed I have no idea. The land girls grew great quantities for Victory during the Second World War.
Having said that I do know how to make molasses from sugar cane, and when I move to the Windward Isles I may have a go Until then however I shall grow sweet bush fruit in the windy Isles of the United Kingdom.

[Lesley Jay]

Go to www.plantcultures.org.uk and it will tell you all you need to know about growing sugar in the UK.

[Esther Greentree]

Hi Mik,

The UK is too cold to grow sugar cane. However, it's probably fine to grow sugar beet, as in France, it is grown in the North, in Picardy especially, which has roughly the same climate as England's south east.

Sugar is extracted out of sugar beet industrially, as explained here: http://www.sucrose.com/lbeet.html. I don't know how you would go about dying out the juice manually though.

Esther

[Lesley Jay]

You can grow sugar cane in this country but I'm not sure how successful it would be. It will grow on a warm windowsill or heated greenhouse. You need to buy some sugar cane which is sold for chewing. Cut it into 15cm lengths and lay these flat in a seed tray containing a mix of half potting compost and half grit. Cover with compost and put in a warm place at least 20c. It should sprout in about 3 weeks. To extract the sugar you have to crush the canes to extract the juice but I would imagine it would be better to use it as chewing sugar cane.