Miscanthus. a tall perennial grass can be extensively cultivated for using it as a biofuel. This biofuel crop as discussed in the previous posts has got a great capability to get accustomed to any kind of climate. This scientific paper claims that M. x giganteus a very important species of Miscanthus has been propagated to yield large quantities of plant-oi in Europe. Tests reveal that this crop requires very less fertilizer inputs like the Camelina and therefore can be widely cultivated. As previously discusses, this crop doesn’t require too much of pesticides and can benefit the societies working on sustainability.
However, as you all know there are a few bottlenecks we are facing to commercialize this fuel crop. Well, some places have already started using Miscanthus fuel. However, it is not as widely used as we want it to be. The main limitations to produce oil are the high initial costs, over winter at some sites and lack of sufficient water in certain areas of Europe for cultivating this oil crop,extraction, harvesting costs and so on.
New agronomic techniques and new genotypes with improved characteristics are being developed and screened over the wide range of ecological conditions in Europe. Efforts are underway to commercialize this oil crop.
For those with the scientific bent of mind, please refer to the full article.
Note: This research article explains the situation of Miscanthus production only in Europe. Apparently, they have tried utilize their experience in Europe to North America as well.
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