When temperatures drop, Siberian Miscanthus plants surpass main bioenergy variety
Wednesday, February 27, 2019 - 03:30
in Earth & Climate
Photosynthesis drives yields, but in cold conditions, this process that turns sunlight into biomass takes a hit. Miscanthus is a popular, sustainable, perennial feedstock for bioenergy production that thrives on marginal land in temperate regions. A new study in GCB Bioenergy from the University of Illinois and Aarhus University assessed Miscanthus collected on a Siberian expedition to identify three new accessions (a term for plants collected from a particular area) with exceptional photosynthetic performance in chilling temperatures that outstrip the industry favorite.