Modeling biomass production of sweet sorghum

Journal Article · Sun Nov 01 04:00:00 EST 1981 · Agron. J.; (United States)

OSTI ID:6971041

Shih, S F; Gascho, G J; Rahi, G S

Sweet sorghum (Sorghum bicolor (L.) Moench) is a leading contender in biomass production energy systems because of its high biomass yield, high percentage of easily fermentable sugars and combustible organics, tolerance to water stress, and low fertilizer requirements. However, scientific information on growth factors is limited and precludes establishing valid inter-relationships for predicting biomass production. With that objective in mind, a field study on sweet sorghum was conducted to investigate the relationships among stalk length, leaf area index and dry biomass. Cultivar Mer 71-7 was planted using two row configurations of single rows on 71-cm centers and double rows on 142 cm centers on Pahokee muck (Lithic Medisaprist). The spacing between double rows was 30 cm. Leaf area, stalk length, and dry leaf biomass were periodically monitored. Six equations involving leaf area were developed. The first equation estimated leaf area (A) from the length of leaf (L) and the maximum width of leaf (W), i.e., A = 0.741 LW. The second equation estimated leaf area from the length of leaf alone, i.e., A = 0.083 L squared. The third equation estimated leaf area per stalk (Y) from stalk length (X), i.e., Y = Exp (X/(2.106 + 0.093X + 0.629X X 10-4X squared). The fourth equation showed the dry leaf biomass accumulation (DAR) as a function of time (T), i.e., DAR = 0.764 X 10-3T0.481. The fifth equation predicted the leaf dry biomass (LDB) from DAR and leaf area index (LAI), i.e., LDB = DAR X LAI. The sixth equation estimated total dry biomass (TDB) from LDB and ratio of dry leaf biomass to total dry biomass (DBPL), i.e., TDB = LDB/DBPL. The relationships developed appeared to be useful for estimating sweet sorghum biomass. However, further testing is needed to evaluate the effects of diverse growing conditions and varieties and to determine the utility of the method in comparison to determining the mean plant weights and populations. (Refs. 16).

• Research Organization: Univ. of Florida, IFAS, Agricultural Research and Education Center, Belle Glade, FL 33430
• OSTI ID: 6971041
• Journal Information: Agron. J.; (United States), Journal Name: Agron. J.; (United States) Vol. 73:6; ISSN AGJOA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

09 BIOMASS FUELS
140504* -- Solar Energy Conversion-- Biomass Production & Conversion-- (-1989)
550800 -- Morphology
553000 -- Agriculture & Food Technology
59 BASIC BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
ALCOHOLS
BIOMASS
BIOMASS PLANTATIONS
CEREALS
CULTIVATION TECHNIQUES
ENERGY SOURCES
ETHANOL
FIELD TESTS
GRAMINEAE
GRASS
GROWTH
HYDROXY COMPOUNDS
LEAVES
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
MORPHOLOGY
NORTH AMERICA
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
PLANT GROWTH
PLANT STEMS
PLANTS
PRODUCTION
PRODUCTIVITY
RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES
SORGHUM
TESTING
USA