Evaluation of potential herbaceous biomass crops on marginal crop lands: 1, Agronomic potential

Technical Report · Sun Jul 01 04:00:00 EDT 1990

OSTI ID:6682155

Cherney, J H; Johnson, K D; Volenec, J J; Kladivko, E J; Greene, D K ^[1]

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1. Purdue Univ., Lafayette, IN (USA). Dept. of Agronomy

Management of herbaceous biomass crops must be investigated concurrently with the development of cost-effective conversion processes. Our objective was to evaluate the agronomic feasibility of several combinations of species and management systems for producing herbaceous biomass on sites ranging from good to marginal cropland. Soil organic matter and aggregate stability were not adversely affected by any of the management options. Of the perennial grasses and legumes investigated, switchgrass showed the most potential as a biomass candidate. It has minimum fertilizer inputs, is very persistent, and is effective in reducing soil erosion. Sorghum double-cropped with winter annual rye was very productive, but required more inputs than switchgrass. Interseeding sorghum into perennial grasses was not a viable option, due to its great dependence on environmental variables. Photoperiod-sensitive and hybrid sorghums able to utilize an entire growing season were very productive, with yields up to 39 Mg ha{sup {minus}1}. Two harvest per season resulted in low yields, such that lodging resistance must be incorporated into desirable genotypes through breeding, instead of using multiple harvests to prevent lodging. Plant composition was greatly affected by species, with a wide range in composition across sorghum genotypes. Of all species evaluated, switchgrass and sorghum have the greatest biomass potential, and both of these species can be improved to produce higher yields of a more desirable chemical composition through plant breeding. 13 refs., 11 figs., 8 tabs.

• Research Organization: Oak Ridge National Lab., TN (USA); Purdue Univ., Lafayette, IN (USA). Dept. of Agronomy
• Sponsoring Organization: DOE/CE
• DOE Contract Number: AC05-84OR21400
• OSTI ID: 6682155
• Report Number(s): ORNL/Sub-85-27412/5-P1; ON: DE90015708; CNN: 19X-27412C
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
090800* -- Biomass Fuels-- Production-- (1990-)
091000 -- Biomass Fuels-- Properties & Composition-- (1990-)
093000 -- Biomass Fuels-- Economic
Industrial
& Business Aspects-- (1990-)
AGRICULTURE
ALFALFA
BIOMASS
BIOMASS CONVERSION PLANTS
BIOMASS PLANTATIONS
CEREALS
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
COMPARATIVE EVALUATIONS
CONTROL
DOCUMENT TYPES
ECONOMICS
ENERGY SOURCES
EROSION CONTROL
FEASIBILITY STUDIES
FERTILIZERS
GENOTYPE
GRASS
HARVESTING
INDUSTRY
LEGUMINOSAE
LILIOPSIDA
MAGNOLIOPHYTA
MAGNOLIOPSIDA
MAIZE
MANAGEMENT
PLANTS
PRODUCTIVITY
PROGRAM MANAGEMENT
PROGRESS REPORT
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
RYE
SEASONS
SENSITIVITY
SOILS
SORGHUM
VARIATIONS