NEF's new planting system speeds up miscanthus development

Energy crop developer New Energy Farms says it has developed a new system for establishing miscanthus that takes one-third the time of previous planting methods.

Paul Carver, NEF co-founder and CEO, who holds a PhD in miscanthus physiology and has been working with the crop for more than 15 years, said he believes the company can address the challenges that have been hindering the expansion of energy crops during the past decade. Of those barriers, establishment costs has been one of the most significant. “Grants and BCAP [Biomass Crop Assistance Program] won’t always be around—they are intended to start the market, not keep it going forever—so we’re very focused on providing systems that allow people to plant crops effectively without grant support,” Carver said. “It needs to end up being half the cost of what it is today.”

Carver said the new system, which he describes a second-generation method of planting energy crops, has three components. The first is a bulked up miscanthus breed that can reproduce rapidly. “The second part is development of uniform propagules that you can auto-drill with no hand labor,” Carver said.

Read full article here: http://biomassmagazine.com/articles/5957/nefs-new-planting-system-speeds-up-miscanthus-development/

Link to November issue of BioMass Magazine.

A Willow Energy Crop Information Resource at Cornell University

The Willowpedia web site hosted by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Cornell University to support a community of knowledge surrounding the academic study and commercial use of shrub willow (Salix spp.) as a sustainable feedstock crop for bioenergy, biofuels, and bioproducts, as well as for environmental engineering and horticultural applications. While much of the information presented here is the result of work at Cornell, the intent of this site is to facilitate the global exchange of knowledge among the entire willow community and the public.

Link to Willowpedia: http://willow.cals.cornell.edu/index.html

Artificial leaves can generate energy | Checkbiotech

On Friday 10 July the research programme Towards Biosolar Cells was granted a budget of 25 million euros by the Dutch Government. The Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality recommended the programme because it will contribute to green energy, improve food supplies and a create a more sustainable biomass. The research focuses on increasing the efficiency of sunlight conversion into energy and building materials in plants and algae through photosynthesis. Part of the programme will involve the development of so-called artificial leaves. Read more:
Artificial leaves can generate energy Checkbiotech Source: bioenergy.checkbiotech.org

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11th Arborists' Trade Fair: Exhibitors display latest kit for dealing with green waste

Horticulture Week

17 June 2009

Organisers of this year's Arborists' Trade Fair say it will have more of a focus on "green-waste solutions".

Arboricultural Association director Nick Eden said: "People are not just looking for woodchippers. They also want log splitters and mobile saw mills. There's an awareness that too much material is simply being wasted."

Perry Plant Hire is promoting BGU machinery from Germany. This machinery can be used for producing kindling wood as well as shredding and bundling wood. Hardmet is also showing ranges of towable chipping and shredding machines, while GreenMech is also featuring a range of tracked chippers and shredders.

Because of high fuel costs, there is obviously more interest in using arboricultural arisings for fuel. Boomeco Biomass will be promoting its services, selling green waste to the biomass and amenity markets. The firm claims that it can boost the profits of arborists by paying money for their waste products.