Foliar nutrient application improves sugarcane bioenergy production by boosting photosynthetic enzyme activity and the antioxidant system

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Abstract
Sugarcane ( Saccharum spp. L.) is a globally important crop, and foliar fertilization can enhance plant growth, yield, and stress tolerance. However, the use of multi‐nutrient complexes remains underexplored. Here, we investigated the effect of two multi‐nutrient foliar fertilizer applications at vegetative stage (N, K, S, B, Cu, Mn, Mo and Zn) and at maturation stage (P, K, Mg, S and B) in 13 field experiments in the early, mid‐late, and late sugarcane harvest seasons. Four treatments were compared: (i) no application of multi‐nutrient foliar fertilizer (control), (ii) application at the vegetative stage of sugarcane (V), (iii) application at the maturation stage (M), and (iv) application at both the vegetative and maturation stages (VMs). Application resulted in significant gains in all biometric parameters, sugar yield, and theoretically recoverable sugars; the largest increases occurred in VM. Bagasse, straw, and energy production followed the pattern of biometric parameters and increased by averages of 7.9%, 9.7%, and 9.7% compared to the control. In early harvest sugarcane, phosphoenolpyruvate carboxylase, ribulose‐1,5‐bisphosphate carboxylase‐oxygenase, superoxide dismutase, catalase, ascorbate peroxidase, and peroxidase activities and proline content were enhanced in M and VM, whereas hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 ) and malondialdehyde contents decreased in these treatments. In summary, multi‐nutrient foliar fertilization at the VMs enhanced sugarcane growth, yield, energy production, and quality across all harvest seasons while improving photosynthetic and antioxidant enzyme activities. The results demonstrate that tailoring multi‐nutrient foliar fertilizer application to the specific physiological and nutritional demands of each phenological stage can promote sugarcane development by reducing the production of stress‐related molecules and enhancing carbon assimilation.

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