Sugar, Sugar

Our recent trip to South Louisiana would not have been complete without pictures of a sugarcane field.

Louisiana produces about 20% of the sugarcane grown in the United States, on over 400,000 acres in 22 parishes.  In south central Louisiana you can see thousands of acres of sugarcane fields, most of which are planted along the roadsides.  This time of year they are lush green, and stand tall in the fields. 

As we traveled the back roads through the heart of Cajun Country, we stopped at an especially pretty field so I could capture a few "up close and personal" pictures.  

I like the contrast of the shadows of the stalks against the cracked, dry soil ... 

With August temperatures reaching the high 90s, it felt good to walk in the shade between the rows.

In the South, you can buy sugarcane stalks at farmer's markets or roadside vegetable stands, and one of my fondest memories from my childhood is my grandfather bringing sugarcane home for me and my cousins.  We would wait patiently (or not so patiently, if the truth be known) for him to cut pieces for us to munch on, relishing the sticky sweetness of the sugar from the cane as it melted in our mouths.

  

The fields will be harvested soon and during harvest time, sugar wagons clattering off to the mills are common sights on country roads.  I would love to go back and get pictures of the harvesting process, and perhaps even munch on some sugarcane ... just for old times' sake.

If you would like to read more about our trip through Acadiana, you can click on the links below:

Off the Beaten Path in South Louisiana

Rayne, Louisiana: Frog Capital of the World

Audubon Bridge: A Work of Art

Stepping Back in Time

Adventures on Avery Island