La caña de azúcar fue domesticada por primera vez por los pueblos de la isla del Pacífico de Nueva Guinea. A medida que migraron en esa zona, llevaron la planta al sudeste asiático.

La caña de azúcar fue cultivada inicialmente para ser masticada. Más tarde, se desarrolló el proceso de refinamiento del azúcar que crea el azúcar blanco cristalizado que conocemos hoy. A medida que las naciones europeas colonizaron las Américas, el cultivo de la caña de azúcar se convirtió en un importante impulsor del comercio transatlántico de esclavos. Generaciones de africanos y pueblos indígenas esclavizados en el Caribe, así como en América del Norte, Central y del Sur, fueron obligados a trabajar en plantaciones de caña de azúcar. La historia de la caña de azúcar no se puede separar de la historia de esta gente.

¡El proceso de refinamiento del azúcar crea muchos “subproductos” útiles! Estos incluyen melaza (que se puede utilizar para la producción de ron), etanol y bioetanol, fibras que se pueden utilizar para fabricar papel o para alimentar el proceso de refinamiento de azúcar, y las médulas que se utilizan para la alimentación animal.

Creado por Ally Barbaro mediante el Programa de Equidad a través de Historias de Duke Gardens. Ally se graduó en 2024 con una maestría de la Nicholas School of the Environment de Duke University.

Vea más plantas de este proyecto aquí.

Sugar cane was first domesticated by peoples on the Pacific Island of New Guinea. As they migrated in the area, they brought the plant to Southeast Asia.

Sugar cane was initially grown to be chewed. Later, people developed the sugar refinement process that creates the white, crystalized sugar we know today. As European nations colonized the Americas, sugar cane cultivation became a major driver of the Trans-Atlantic slave trade. Generations of enslaved Africans and Indigenous peoples in the Caribbean, as well as in North, Central and South America, were forced to work on sugar cane plantations. The story of sugar cane cannot be separated from the story of these people.

The sugar refinement process creates many useful “byproducts!” These include molasses (which can be used for rum production), ethanol & bioethanol, fibers which can be used to make paper or to fuel the sugar refinement process, and piths which are used for animal feed.

Created by Ally Barbaro through Duke Gardens’ Equity Through Stories Program. Ally is a 2024 graduate with a master’s degree from Duke University’s Nicholas School of the Environment.

See more plants from this project here.

Visitors to Duke Gardens speak many different languages. English and Spanish are two of the most common primary languages in our area today.

Reading a sign is generally an easier way to get information in the garden than scanning a QR code to go to a website for a translation, as you might have noticed! When our signs can only be printed in one language due to size constraints, we vary which language is on the sign and which is on the website so that both English and Spanish speakers have the opportunity to read signs in person.