Browsing by Subject "Perennial biomass crop"

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Grower perspectives on perennial wild plant mixtures for biogas production in Germany
(2024) Becker, David; Ilic, Anna-Maria; Reichardt, Franziska Julia; Hartung, Jens; Beck, janna; Jablonowski, Nicolai David; Lewin, Eva; von Cossel, Moritz
‘Perennial wild plant mixtures’ (WPM) cultivation is a novel approach to combine biomass provisioning for biogas production with biodiversity enhancement at field scale in Germany. But the methane yield is about 40% lower compared with silage maize. Therefore, the cultivation of WPM is incentivized with about 250–927 Euro per hectare and year. However, agronomic and best management practices of WPM cultivation are unclear, so that large parts of the yield potential of WPM are likely to remain untapped. Hence, this study aims to shed light on farmers’ current perspectives and experiences with WPM cultivation by carrying out a nationwide survey in 2021. The feasibility of inferential statistics was examined in detail, but was not possible due to an insufficient number of responses. Nevertheless, the descriptive analysis revealed valuable information on farmers’ experiences with and their motives for cultivating WPM such as biodiversity enhancement and landscape beauty. Generally, WPM were proven to be much less productive compared with common biogas crops such as maize. Nevertheless, 59% of the farmers cultivated WPM on less favorable soil, and 67% of the farmers used nitrogen fertilization rates of less than or equal to 50 kg ha−1, resulting in generally higher yields compared with results from unfertilized areas. However, while there is common agreement on the positive effects of WPM cultivation on agrobiodiversity, more agronomic research on best management practices is required to make WPM more competitive to common biogas crops without additional subsidies.
Site impacts nutrient translocation efficiency in intraspecies and interspecies miscanthus hybrids on marginal lands
(2022) Magenau, Elena; Clifton‐Brown, John; Awty‐Carroll, Danny; Ashman, Chris; Ferrarini, Andrea; Kontek, Mislav; Martani, Enrico; Roderick, Kevin; Amaducci, Stefano; Davey, Chris; Jurišić, Vanja; Kam, Jason; Trindade, Luisa M.; Lewandowski, Iris; Kiesel, Andreas
Miscanthus, a C4 perennial rhizomatous grass, is capable of growing in varied climates and soil types in Europe, including on marginal lands. It can produce high yields with low nutrient inputs when harvested after complete senescence. Senescence induction and rate depend on complex genetic, environmental, and management interactions. To explore these interactions, we analysed four miscanthus hybrids (two novel seed‐based hybrids, GRC 3 [Miscanthus sinensis × sinensis] and GRC 14 [M. sacchariflorus × sinensis]; GRC 15, a novel M. sacchariflorus × sinensis clone; and GRC 9, a standard Miscanthus × giganteus clone) in Italy, Croatia, Germany and the UK. Over all trial locations and hybrids, the average aboveground biomass of the 3‐year‐old stands in August 2020 was 15 t DM ha−1 with nutrient contents of 7.6 mg N g−1 and 14.6 mg K g−1. As expected, delaying the harvest until spring reduced overall yield and nutrient contents (12 t DM ha−1, 3.3 mg N g−1, and 5.5 mg K g−1). At lower latitudes, the late‐ripening M. sacchariflorus × sinensis GRC 14 and GRC 15 combined high yields with low nutrient contents. At the most elevated latitude location (UK), the early‐ripening M. sinensis × sinensis combined high biomass yields with low nutrient offtakes. The clonal Miscanthus × giganteus with intermediate flowering and senescence attained similar low nutrient contents by spring harvest at all four locations. Seasonal changes in yield and nutrient levels analysed in this study provide: (1) a first step towards recommending hybrids for specific locations and end uses in Europe; (2) crucial data for determination of harvest time and practical steps in the valorization of biomass; and (3) key sustainability data for life cycle assessments. Identification of trade‐offs resulting from genetic × environment × management interactions is critical for increasing sustainable biomass supply from miscanthus grown on marginal lands.