Biomass yield and fibre components in reed canary grass and tall fescue grown as feedstock for combustion

This study was begun in 1990 when there was a marked shortage of short fibre raw material for the pulp industry. During the last ten years the situation has changed little, and the shortage is still apparent. It was estimated that 0.5 to 1 million hectares of arable land would be set aside from cultivation in Finland during this period. An alternative to using hardwoods in printing papers is non-wood fibres from herbaceous field crops. The study aimed at determining the feasibility of using non-wood plants as raw material for the pulp and paper industry, and developing crop management methods for the selected species. The properties considered important for a fibre crop were high yielding ability, high pulping quality and good adaptation to the prevailing climatic conditions and possibilities for low cost production. A strategy and a process to identify, select and introduce a crop for domestic short fibre production is described in this thesis. The experimental part of the study consisted of screening plant species by analysing fibre and mineral content, evaluating crop management methods and varieties, resulting in description of an appropriate cropping system for large-scale fibre plant production. Of the 17 herbaceous plant species studied, monocotyledons were most suitable for pulping. They were productive and well adapted to Finnish climatic conditions. Of the monocots, reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) and tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.) were the most promising. These were chosen for further studies and were included in field experiments to determine the most suitable harvesting system and fertilizer application procedures for biomass production. Reed canary grass was favoured by delayed harvesting in spring when the moisture content of the crop stand was 10-15% of DM before production of new tillers. When sown in early spring, reed canary grass typically yielded 7-8 t ha-1 within three years on clay soil. The yield exceeded 10 t ha-1 on organic soil after the second harvest year. Spring harvesting was not suitable for tall fescue and resulted in only 37-54% of dry matter yields and in far fewer stems and panicles than harvested during the growing season. The economic optimum for fertilizer application rate for reed canary grass ranged from 50 to 100 kg N ha-1 when grown on clay soil and harvested in spring. On organic soil the fertilizer rates needed were lower. If tall fescue is used for raw material for paper, fertilizer application rates higher than 100 kg N ha-1 were not of any additional benefit. It was possible to decrease the mineral content of raw material by harvesting in spring, using moderate fertilizer application rates, removing leaf blades from the raw material and growing the crop on organic soil. The fibre content of the raw material increased the later the crop was harvested, being highest in spring. Removing leaf blades and using minimum fertilizer application rates in-creased the fibre content of biomass.;

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PERFORMANCE OF FOUR IRRIGATED PASTURE MIXTURES UNDER GRAZING BY SHEEP

Canadian Journal of Plant Science ◽

10.4141/cjps61-080 ◽

1961 ◽

Vol 41 (3) ◽

pp. 533-543 ◽

Cited By ~ 5

Author(s):

D. B. Wilson ◽

R. D. Clark

Keyword(s):

Tall Fescue ◽

Festuca Arundinacea ◽

Fertilizer Application ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Red Fescue ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Medicago Sativa L ◽

Trifolium Repens L ◽

Dactylis Glomerata L ◽

Moderate Yield

Four herbage mixtures with two levels of fertilizer application were compared for 6 consecutive years under grazing by sheep. The most satisfactory mixture with respect to yield, persistence, and stability was one of orchardgrass, Dactylis glomerata L., smooth bromegrass, Bromus inermis Leys., creeping red fescue, Festuca rubra L., and ladino clover, Trifolium repens L. The same mixture of grasses without clover was lower yielding even with annual applications of 78 pounds of nitrogen and 48 pounds of P2O5 per acre. A mixture of orchardgrass, tall fescue, Festuca arundinacea Schreb., reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea L., and alfalfa, Medicago sativa L. yielded well, and combated weed encroachment but the alfalfa did not persist beyond the third year. Tall fescue was very aggressive in this mixture. A mixture of orchardgrass and ladino clover yielded well for a few years but became badly infested with weeds as the orchardgrass was reduced through winter killing. Moderate yield increases were obtained from phosphorus and nitrogen fertilizer applications on all mixtures.

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Impact of different harvest times on ash fusibility of energy grasses

Research in Agricultural Engineering ◽

10.17221/29/2011-rae ◽

2012 ◽

Vol 58 (No. 1) ◽

pp. 9-15

Author(s):

P. Hutla ◽

P. Jevič ◽

Z. Strašil ◽

J. Kočica

Keyword(s):

Tall Fescue ◽

Early Summer ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Ash Fusibility ◽

Spring Harvest

Five different energy grass plants (reed canary grass, tall fescue, orchardgrass, tall oatgrass, red top) were identified and studied for the purpose of determining the fuel energy qualities of the plants’ mass while focusing on ash fusion temperatures. The plants were cultivated on four different locations and harvested in various times of the year (early summer, autumn and spring of the following year). It was found that the ash fusion temperatures of plants harvested in early summer were substantially lower in comparison with the autumn and spring harvest. The analysis of the composition of the ashes gathered from samples of grass plants harvested in early summer contained a substantially higher level of potassium, higher level of sodium and higher level of anions Cl– and PO43–. SiO2 is the most represented component in all of the ashes, with the late harvest having approximately 2–3 times higher level than the early one.

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Feasibility of tall fescue, cocksfoot and reed canary grass for anaerobic digestion: Analysis of productivity and energy potential

Industrial Crops and Products ◽

10.1016/j.indcrop.2016.01.033 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 84 ◽

pp. 87-96 ◽

Cited By ~ 11

Author(s):

Vita Tilvikiene ◽

Zydre Kadziuliene ◽

Zenonas Dabkevicius ◽

Kestutis Venslauskas ◽

Kestutis Navickas

Keyword(s):

Anaerobic Digestion ◽

Tall Fescue ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Energy Potential ◽

Canary Grass

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Biomass Yield and Greenhouse Gas Emissions from a Drained Fen Peatland Cultivated with Reed Canary Grass under Different Harvest and Fertilizer Regimes

BioEnergy Research ◽

10.1007/s12155-013-9316-5 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 6 (3) ◽

pp. 883-895 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Tanka P. Kandel ◽

Lars Elsgaard ◽

Sandhya Karki ◽

Poul E. Lærke

Keyword(s):

Greenhouse Gas Emissions ◽

Greenhouse Gas ◽

Biomass Yield ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Gas Emissions ◽

Canary Grass ◽

Fertilizer Regimes

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The possibility of using sewage sludge for energy crop cultivation exemplified by reed canary grass and giant miscanthus

Soil Science Annual ◽

10.2478/ssa-2019-0003 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 70 (1) ◽

pp. 21-33 ◽

Cited By ~ 7

Author(s):

Jacek Antonkiewicz ◽

Barbara Kołodziej ◽

Elżbieta Jolanta Bielińska ◽

Anna Popławska

Keyword(s):

Sewage Sludge ◽

Biomass Yield ◽

Energy Crops ◽

Municipal Sewage ◽

Municipal Sewage Sludge ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Nutrient Requirements ◽

Giant Miscanthus ◽

High Nutrient ◽

Canary Grass

Abstract Energy crops, on account of high biomass yields, have high nutrient requirements in relation to macroelements. Municipal sewage sludge can be a potential source of micronutrients for plants with high nutrient requirements. The use of macronutrients from sewage sludge by energy crops is an alternative form of nutrient recycling from organic waste. The aim of the research was to assess the content, uptake and use of N, P, K, Ca, Mg and Na from municipal sewage sludge by reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea L.) and giant miscanthus (Miscanthus × giganteus Greef et Deu). The effect of sewage sludge on the ratios between macroelements in the biomass of the tested plants was also assessed. The multi-year field experiment involved four levels of fertilization with sewage sludge at doses of 0, 10, 20, 40, 60 Mg DM·ha−1. Due to the low potassium content in this waste, supplementary potassium fertilization (100 kg K·ha−1 in the form of 40% potassium salt (KCl)) was applied once on all plots. It was established that the increasing doses of sewage sludge had a considerable effect on the increase in the content and uptake of N, P, K, Ca, Mg and Na by the biomass of the tested energy crops. The research shows that, compared to giant miscanthus, reed canary grass had a higher macronutrient content. The largest amount of uptaken N, P, K, Ca and Mg was found in reed canary grass (at a dose of 40 Mg DM·ha−1), whereas Na was detected in giant miscanthus (at a dose o 20 Mg DM·ha−1). It was established that giant miscanthus, on account of its higher yielding, recovers macroelements from sewage sludge applied to soil at a dose of 10 Mg DM·ha−1 to the greatest extent. The increasing doses of sewage sludge considerably decreased the value of K:Mg, Ca:Mg, Ca:P ratios in miscanthus biomass yield. The applied doses of sewage sludge (40–60 Mg DM·ha−1) increased the value of K:Ca, Ca:P, K:Na ratios in miscanthus biomass yield.

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Biomass Yield of Naturalized Populations and Cultivars of Reed Canary Grass

BioEnergy Research ◽

10.1007/s12155-009-9043-0 ◽

2009 ◽

Vol 2 (3) ◽

pp. 165-173 ◽

Cited By ~ 22

Author(s):

Michael D. Casler ◽

Jerome H. Cherney ◽

E. Charles Brummer

Keyword(s):

Biomass Yield ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

Canary Grass

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Variation in biomass related variables of reed canary grass

Agricultural and Food Science ◽

10.23986/afsci.5749 ◽

2003 ◽

Vol 12 (3-4) ◽

pp. 213-225 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

M. SAHRAMAA ◽

H. IHAMÄKI ◽

L. JAUHIAINEN

Keyword(s):

Plant Height ◽

Biomass Yield ◽

Local Group ◽

Yield Potential ◽

Reed Canary Grass ◽

High Biomass ◽

Panicle Number ◽

Shoot Number ◽

Canary Grass ◽

High Biomass Yield

Reed canary grass, Phalaris arundinacea L., is a relatively new biomass crop in northern Europe, which produces raw material for bioenergy and paper pulp. Breeding reed canary grass for industrial purposes is under way in the absence of domestic cultivars being available. Knowledge of the extent of variation in biomass related traits is a basic requirement of the breeding programme. The aim of this study was to describe variation in biomass related traits and evaluate the relationships among the variables. Field experiment was carried out between 1994 and 1998 in Finland. Research material included wild and elite populations, which were divided into ten groups according to their origin. Biomass yield, plant fractions, shoot number, node number, leaf area and overwintering ability were measured. Panicle number, plant height and seed ripening were included to the analyses of the relationships. Results indicated the high biomass yield potential of reed canary grass, reaching over 13 t DM ha-1 in the fourth year after establishment. Elite material and a local group from southern Finland had the highest biomass yield, whereas the northernmost local group had the lowest. Three factors established accounted for 45% of the variance and they were defined as high biomass yield, leaf-shoot relationship and fast development. The first factor indicated positive connections among biomass yield, panicle number, plant height, straw fraction and node fraction. This study indicated variation in agronomic traits of reed canary grass, which enables breeding of new cultivars with desired trait combinations.;

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