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Miscanthus for Bioenergy – Europe & USA

The need for a rapid reduction in greenhouse gases is well known, and bioenergy is one of the possible solutions. The new perennial grass crop Miscanthus is particularly promising for bioenergy, as it is hardy, fast growing and efficient in its use of water.Miscanthus is the name of a group of perennial grasses native to Asia and Africa, and first introduced into the UK as an ornamental plant in the 19th century. The type most commonly grown for biomass is a sterile hybrid (called Miscanthu...

Grass Used as Fuel Source

Transcript: Robyn Williams on The Science ShowABC (Australia) – Broadcast: Sat 24 Sep 2005, 12:00amNote: This is an old interview, but an interesting one nonetheless. Robyn and Dr Stephen Long (Department of Plant Biology & Crop Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign) discuss the use of Miscanthus as a fuel source when the project was in the early stages.Robyn Williams: Well, we continue to burn coal in our power stations – but why not use grass instead? Professor Stev...

Miscanthus Bedding for Sheep, Goats, Horses and Cows

Miscanthus bedding is the modern alternative to straw and wood shavings, proving more absorbent than straw and shavings. It can be used the same way as any other bedding either deep litter or a shallow covering on rubber mats.As soon as the droppings and wet patches are removed from the stable or animal pens it will compost quicker than other beddings.Miscanthus reduces contact between animals and manure, minimises ammonia levels, and insulates and protects animals from concrete floors. It is so...

MISCANTHUS - MARKET TAKING OFF

This newsletter is an update about the Miscanthus market because recently, the demand for Miscanthus seems to be taking off. The result is that it is a very rapidly changing investment scene. New and expanded uses for Miscanthus are appearing, and new sites are being planted.All of the harvested material that Miscanthus New Zealand Limited (MNZ) had in store from 2019 harvest has been sold. We have only a handful of broken or partly broken bales in the Putaruru store and the material stored at K...

Miscanthus x giganteus (MxG) Research

Following the oil crisis of the 1970s, a search for ideal bioenergy crops began. This included research into the biomass yield potential of giant miscanthus.Miscanthus x giganteus is now used commercially in Europe for bedding, heat, and electricity generation. Most production currently occurs in England but also in Spain, Italy, Hungary, France, and Germany.In the United States, research began at the University of Illinois in 2001. The same plot design used in the Illinois trials was replicated...

Miscanthus as a Biofuel in the US

In the United States, research began at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in 2001. Miscanthus Giganteus has been proposed for use in the United States in combined heat and power generation, as a supplement or on its own. It is also a leading candidate feedstock for cellulosic ethanol. Miscanthus Giganteus could meet biofuel goals without bringing new land into production or displacing food supply.Miscanthus Giganteus is one of the most promising biomass crops in the United States to...

The Origins of Giant Miscanthus

The genus Miscanthus includes approximately 20 species. The name comes from the Greek mischos meaning “stalk” and anthos, “flowers.” Grasses in this genus are called Maiden Grass, Chinese Silver Grass, Japanese Silver Grass, Susuki Grass, or Eulalia Grass.Miscanthus is native to Asia. It is found in China, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea in meadows, marshes, hillsides, and abandoned areas, near active volcanoes, in poor soil and on mountainsides up to 1500 metres. ...

Miscanthus – carbon negative and regionally beneficial

One of the many positives of Miscanthus is its ability to be used to make Renewable Diesel Fuel (RDF), a direct and complete substitute for fossil fuel diesel. With the RDF production process being significantly carbon negative – because about 15% of the dry matter that goes in, ends up as permanently sequestered carbon. RDF from Miscanthus is based on New Zealand biomass which allows for direct import substitution, improving New Zealand’s fuel security and reducing NZ’s international fuel...

Multipurpose plant has big future in Germany

Researchers in Germany are looking at ways beyond meat, grain or dairying for farmers to grow and profit from in future.On a 200-hectare farm at Meckenheim, 15km south west of Bonn, scientists are investigating how plants can be used for everything from biofuel, to building materials, paper and medicine.The University of Bonn’s ​Dr Thorsten Kraska​ says plants such as virginia mellow, cup plant, princess tree and jerusalem artichoke can all be used for multiple purposes before being burned...

Miscanthus poised to take off in New Zealand

Peter Brown  of Miscanthus New Zealand Ltd (MNZ) says Lincoln University, Fonterra and local government are taking a close look at the plant’s potential.MNZ has stands of Miscanthus growing in Huntly, Helensville, Nelson, Darfield, and Taupo.“I believe it’s poised to suddenly take off. I think the potential is absolutely enormous. My vision for the future is that every farmer in New Zealand with land of suitable terrain would have some Miscanthus on it, even if it is just for their ow...

The Miscanthus Project – November 2012 to April 2014

Research proposal approved – decided initially to concentrate on the eco-system service benefits generated from creating Miscanthus shelterbelts.Ground preparation started on Aylesbury Road farm and Karetu farm. 48 bumble bee motels placed....

Tall grass proves its versatility

A North Asian grass closely related to sugarcane, Miscanthus x giganteus grows to 3.5 – 4m high and is used overseas for feedstock for biofuels, stock bedding and emergency stock feed.Research by Lincoln University PhD student Chris Littlejohn, supervised by Wratten and originally funded by Westland Milk Products, looked into the performance of six L-shaped trial plots of Miscanthus grown on a dairy farm at Aylesbury, about 30km west of Christchurch.On dairy farms where traditional shelter bel...

Miscanthus Overview and its use as a Wind Break and Biofuel

Miscanthus is a high yielding crop that annually grows over three metres tall. Similar in appearance to sugar cane, it produces a crop every year without the need for replanting. Miscanthus is used for feedstock production for energy and non-energy end uses. It is a valuable crop, offering major benefits to many sectors, inside and outside of agriculture. It can also be used as animal bedding material and can act as an emergency feed supply during droughts.Miscanthus grass forms a thick barrier ...

Blog Post – February 2014

Things were very hectic through January and into February. I do not think I really realised at the time we purchased the Taharoa C Block Incorporation Miscanthus assets, just how much work this would involve. Whereas we had previously been focusing on the production of plantlets with the aim of getting into rhizomes eventually, plus a multitude of end uses for the product once it was grown, we now suddenly you are in a position where we had become a Miscanthus grower with over 9 ha well into pro...

Blog Post – January 2014

Well with all the rush of activity immediately prior to Christmas, the monthly chat was noticeable by its absence. This was accentuated by my wanting to delay posting another message until some interesting developments had come to fruition one way or the other. The other significant player in the Miscanthus business in New Zealand – the Taharoa C Block Incorporation – indicated to Miscanthus New Zealand Limited (MNZ) that they wished to cease involvement in Miscanthus in the future. They app...

Project Update January 2014

Project Update. Period: to January 2014Chris Littlejohn, Bio-Protection Research Centre, P O Box 85084, Lincoln University. p: +64 3 325 3838 extension: 8639 Mob. +64 2108204285Funders; Westland Milk Products Ltd. and DairyNZ, + support from Agresearch and Lincoln University...

Blog Post – October 2013

The growing season for Miscanthus is well underway and even in areas that have not been harvested, the Miscanthus is shooting up extremely quickly. Three weeks ago at a site in the South Waikato area, the Miscanthus was already knee height and the change from one week to the next has been quite exciting to watch. Reports from Canterbury have indicated that while the Miscanthus started growing quite early, it does tend to get stopped by cold spells and then starts to grow again after the cold spe...

Project Update September 2013

Chris Littlejohn, Bio-Protection Research Centre, P O Box 85084, Lincoln University. p: +64 3 325 3838 extension: 8639 Mob. +64 2108204285Funders; Westland Milk Products and DairyNZ, + support from Agresearch...

Blog Post – September 2013

An American colleague of mine who is involved in Miscanthus research and teaching said to me some time back that development of a Miscanthus industry is a business that takes quite some time to get going. For somebody as impatient as I am, it was frustrating to hear that, but she is quite right. So far this season, there has been considerable interest from a large number of different people who are interested in establishing Miscanthus as a trial to “see how it goes in their area”. That is r...

Blog Post – August 2013

You would really think that because it is the time of year when things are not growing, this would be the quiet time of year in the Miscanthus business. But it is in fact the time of year when we are trying to get people to firm up on their decisions about how many plants they are going to need in the coming spring so that we can produce enough plants to supply them, without overproducing. I sent our nurseryman an e-mail in May and said that at that stage we had orders for something between 60 p...

Blog Post – July 2013

June is the month that I always associate with cold damp weather which is characteristic of the National Fieldays. This year, my annual pilgrimage to the Fieldays found that although it was quite cold it was not damp and in terms of weather was quite a pleasant day. It was also different in that I was going there with the express purpose of having at least two meetings with people who had contacted me regarding serious interest in being involved in the Miscanthus industry. It made a bit of a cha...

Project Update July 2013

Chris Littlejohn, Bio-Protection Research Centre, P O Box 85084, Lincoln University. p: +64 3 325 3838 extension: 8639Mid-winter Update...

Blog Post – June 2013

Interest in Miscanthus is growing rapidly and Miscanthus New Zealand (MNZ) has had a number of enquiries from people wanting to order small quantities to establish tiny trial areas of Miscanthus on their properties. These will all be interesting but MNZ is conscious of the fact that they give little information on the possibilities for commercial scale planting. In some cases there are issues that arise in small areas that are insignificant in commercial scale planting – such as rabbit damage....

Blog Post – May 2013

The past month has finally seen the end of the drought and although it has been very hard on many people in the rural sector, it has given us some very useful information on how Miscanthus handles drought.We were lucky enough in Hawkes Bay to have Miscanthus growing on two sites – one with a naturally high water table, and the other with a very well-drained soil. On this second site, part of the crop received accidental irrigation that was being delivered to the paddock next door. As a result ...

Project Update April 2013

Fig.1: MxG plantings at Aylesbury FarmGrowth of irrigated plants has continued to be impressive at Aylesbury farm with some now over 1.5 m tall. Karetu farm received its first significant rainfall since February 6 on March 19 with 26 – 30 mm of rain over two days. This resulted in what were apparently dead MxG plants sprouting new shoots, indicating the robustness of this plant. Recent rainfall in early April brought about further new vigorous growth as illustrated by fig.3. In comparison the ...