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Little River, TX | The Experiment station at Stephenville, TX did a lot of experimenting with switchgrass. The idea was for bio fuel and a way to dispose of dairy waste.
Switchgrass is really a good forage for grazing, if managed. It is what is referred to as an ice cream grass, in that cattle relish it when still fairly young.
Just remember this, switch grass is a bunch grass. This means some good planning needs to be done before planting if you plan on mechanical harvesting, Big thing is to space the rows of grass for the width of your tractors and equipment tire widths will want to run down the middles not over the stubble.
Switch grass for hay, at Stephenville, TX or Sacramento CA wants to be harvested 3 times for quality. For fuel it wants to be harvested only one time a year, when fully mature and tough as a board.
Be careful reading the literature.
Some will tell us that switchgrass produces with little or no added fertility, True more or less.
Some will tell us that switchgrass will produce tremendous tonnages of organic matter per acre. Also true more or less.
Problem is not at the same time. The large tonnages will only be as much as there is nitrogen. Figure maybe <20 lbs/N/Ton of high fiber stuff. Figure 40 lbs/N/Ton of quality feed.
Something else not mentioed is the variety planted needs to be adapted to the climate and soil where it is to be grown.
What the biofuel people like about switchgrass is the grass does not lodge at maturity. Eastern Gammagrass is a better quality feed, (my opinion,) but it will not stand there patiently to be harvested at maturity.
To compete a biofuel must be able to fire a boiler for no more cost than coal. Then consider the volume. Here we have several unit trains with Wyoming Coal going to power plants. Every Day!
Edited by Hay Wilson in TX 1/19/2010 09:25
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Bio Fuel Possibility - Swtichgrass
