Zeng De-cai, a 73-year-old member of the indigenous Amis group in Hualien County's Kuangfu Township, is locally famous for his unusual success growing sugarcane.
Zeng’s tribal name is Nemehao, a word that sounds very much like the Mandarin Chinese phrase for “so good.” Although Zeng did not previously use this traditional name, a neighboring pastor got into the habit of using the Mandarin form, and Zeng himself started introducing himself that way, until today, he is widely known as “Grandpa So Good.”
In his yard he grows red sugarcane, all of which is “so long.” He ties the cane stalks to bamboo supports to protect them from typhoon winds, and every few days he brings out a ladder and climbs the trees to pull off old leaves. He dresses the roots with organic fertilizer and takes very good care of them. Zeng said he has cultivated this sugarcane for seven years, and the old plants continually produce shoots for him, which he enjoys eating in stir-fry.
Lin Xiang-zhen, assistant manager at the Hualien Tourist Sugar Factory, said white sugarcane or the red varieties used for food use can usually be squeezed after a year or eighteen months of cultivation. Usually, the plants have reached 2 to 3 meters in height, but their maximum potential height is determined by whether or not they have had enough fertilizer.
Lin said there are two types of sugar cane: plant cane and ratoon cane. The plant cane can be harvested in 18 months. The stubble left behind after cutting will then send forth new sprouts that develop into ratoon cane, which is quite prone to disease and damage. It is very unusual for anyone to be able to keep ratoon cane going for seven years, and Lin said he has never heard of anyone else managing to do so.
(This article originally appeared in The Liberty Times Nov. 30.)