Biomass Yield of Naturalized Populations and Cultivars of Reed Canary Grass

Abstract

Reed canary grass is a widely adapted temperate grass with a circumglobal distribution in the northern hemisphere. Because it has relatively high biomass yields under relatively infrequent harvest systems, this species is receiving increasing attention as a bioenergy feedstock. The objective of this study was to conduct a comparative biomass yield evaluation of reed canary grass accessions from a wide range of habitats in the north central and northeastern USA. Eight cultivars and 72 accessions were evaluated for biomass yield over 2 years at five locations in Iowa, New York, and Wisconsin. Accessions produced, on average, 6.7% higher biomass yield than the cultivars. Cultivars ranked from 50th to 77th in biomass yield out of a total of 80 cultivars and accessions. Genetic expression for biomass yield was highly consistent across locations and years. Accessions from southern and western collection sites tended to have the highest biomass yield. Reed canary grass populations in rural landscapes of the central and northeastern USA have value for increasing biomass yield potential of this bioenergy feedstock candidate species. The high biomass yield of many of these populations, combined with the large amount of genetic variability among these populations, offers potential for both short-term gains by selecting superior accessions and long-term gains by selection and breeding.

Biomass Yield and Quality of Reed Canarygrass under Five Harvest Management Systems for Bioenergy Production

“…Importantly, with the exception of Common, all cultivars used in this trial had been selected for lower alkaloid concentrations to improve their forage palatability and nutritional value. Subsequent to the experiment reported here, we evaluated numerous wild populations we collected in the wild from the northern USA and identified many that produced higher biomass yields than existing cultivars, including most of those evaluated here [7]. These populations likely do not have a favorable alkaloid profile for animal production but may serve as the basis of dedicated biofuel cultivars.…”

“…Starting from native collections, rather than the forage cultivars, appears to be the most promising route to dedicated biofuel cultivars based on our recent germplasm evaluation [7]. Direct selection for biomass yield using progeny testing is probably the best second step, after the optimum starting populations are identified [6].…”

Comparison of Genome Size in Reed Canarygrass (<i>Phalaris arundinacea</i> L.) Exotic and Putative Native Japanese Genotypes by Flow Cytometry

“…The creeping rhizomes of P. arundinacea exhibit vigorous growth, and the species exhibits a marked tolerance to changes in humidity, snow, cold and heat. In addition, because P. arundinacea can be propagated in various ways (seeds, tillers and rhizomes), the species has been an important source of forage in the USA since the nineteenth century, when the European cultivar was introduced, and is also expected to be a promising source of biomass material in the future (Lewandowski et al 2003, Casler et al 2009). However, the high propagation of P. arundinacea is also a potential ecological problem, and it is perceived as a major invasive species in the USA (Merigliano & Lesica 1998, Lavergne & Molofsky 2007.…”

Monocotyledons in Particleboard Production: Adhesives, Additives, and Surface Modification of Reed Canary Grass

“…The high biomass production of this species in boreal zones and its adaption to wet soils with a low pH value (Hall 2008) makes it a species of interest for energy production in northern Europe (Xiong et al 2008). For these reasons, areas devoted to RCG for biomass production in Finland increased from 500 to 17,000 hectares between (Casler et al 2009). RCG has been considered not only for energy purposes but also as raw material for pulp and paper production (Finell 2003;Thykesson et al 1998).…”