Switchgrass, canola biofuel crops thriving in southwestern ND

By SUE ROESLER, Farm & Ranch Guide
Friday, August 1, 2008 10:15 AM CDT

Eric Eriksmoen, left, and Hans Kandel talk about biodiesel in Hettinger, N.D.

Switchgrass may not be the ideal biomass to be grown for biofuels in the drier, western parts of North Dakota, but there are many varieties of wheatgrasses and other perennial grasses that grow well in the Hettinger and Dickinson areas.

In fact, those grass varieties were growing tall and lush at the far southwestern Hettinger Research Extension Center during its field days in July.

It is difficult to have pure stands of switchgrass because there are weeds and other grass invaders, and herbicides have not been developed to take those out. But bioenergy plants can use all kinds of grass mixtures for cellulosic ethanol, and that, experts say, is the future for ethanol.

Eric Eriksmoen, agronomist at HREC, said Hettinger is involved in growing grasses for bioenergy research. New growth switchgrass was popping up in the fields.

There are tall wheatgrasses growing in the plots that are being tested in the NDSU research.

“Maybe switchgrass isn't going to work here,” Eriksmoen said. “But there are other grasses that we can grow. And those will certainly work for cellulosic ethanol.”

The Hettinger area had received several inches of rain which was obvious in how well the crops and grasses were thriving during field days.

“We had 4 inches of rain in May, and 5 inches of rain in June,” he said, adding there was little winter moisture at all.

That scenario was not repeated at the Dickinson Research Extension Center the next day however, at its field days. Coming off several months of extreme drought, the crops were short in fields west of the town.

At the Regent crop tour, located halfway between Hettinger and Dickinson, crops were also short, as are many in the dry area where little rain and at least two bouts of hail have hit.

“Crops look pretty poor this year,” said Eriksmoen, who raises the crops on that tour for the center's research.

He and his crew also plant many varieties of peas and lentils at the Wilton, N.D., USA Pulse Tour where some excellent pulse crops, including several that are ready for release soon, were showcased last week.

Les Paulson, Paulson Seeds in Bowman, said it is better for producers to have no crops than short crops. With poor crops, producers are still required to combine them for crop insurance. His crops, as most in the area, are in poor shape and there will be little to harvest this year, he said last week.

But even poor crops make good research. Dr. Pat Carr, agronomist, said the Dickinson site is also part of the research statewide.

At Hettinger, Eriksmoen showed producers some tall, nice plots of triticale.

“USDA says triticale produces more starch per acre in the Upper Midwest than any other crop,” he said. “We can grow that today.”

Triticale, a good feed, could also be used for biomass. Indeed, nearly all crops, including wheat, barley and many others such as Speltz, an older variety that Hettinger grows for feed, could go for cellulosic ethanol.

He said Hettinger is continuing its research into switchgrass and may grow some stands this year.

Eriksmoen showed some beautiful canola in the field, a seed that ADM crushes into biodiesel in Velva, N.D. Besides biodiesel, canola also has excellent markets for oil.

“This canola was planted into pea stubble. It looks very nice,” he said, adding NDSU hired a canola breeder about a year ago. The varieties at the center are commercial varieties.

Research centers have a unique trial going on right now where commercial seed companies have entered their best “elite” canola varieties. They can be conventional, Liberty Link, Roundup Ready or other types. Results will be given out in December.

Hans Kandel, NDSU Extension agronomist who has worked with University of Minnesota, said there is some drought stress in the blooming canola.

“Some of the plots are completely done blooming,” he said. “Where some are still blooming, the leaves are starting to droop. Canola is a cool season crop, so the cooler it stays, the better the grain will fill. When it gets hot, you may not get complete filling, so we like to have an earlier maturing variety that does well in this region.”

Some aphids were noticed in the tops of some of the pods, but in the entire trial, it was not an issue, he said.

Kandel said in order to increase biodiesel production, either the canola acres can grow or the oil yield per acre can grow. Oil yield per acre means a combination of yield and oil percentage, he said. Varieties for biodiesel that should be advanced have that oil yield per acre advantage over time.

Spring canola should be planted as early as producers can get into the fields in the spring.

“Part of the trick with canola is getting in as early as possible,” he said. In areas in the southern part of the state, it definitely needs to go in early since it is a cool season crop. Areas in the northern part grow more canola, but there is more interest in growing it in the southern areas also.

Some experimental trials at Hettinger involved planting canola dormant in the fall at a time when soil temps were low so it would not germinate.

“However, the tricky part is when you plant it in the fall and you think it is going to freeze up, all of a sudden you could get a warm period and it would still germinate,” Kandel said.

The advantage is that the crop, if it doesn't germinate in the fall, will have a head start in the spring.

Winter canola is another way for producers to go, he said. Those varieties are also planted in the fall, but will grow some in the fall and then will go dormant in the winter.

It will then start to grow early in the spring.

A number of producers in northwest Minnesota and in Fargo have tried the winter canola. Usually, they will end up with a yield advantage because they come out of the ground early, he said.

“There is a problem though,” Kandel said. “We aren't getting consistent winter survivability. It is a combination of the snow cover and the temperatures. But we are still struggling as researchers to find the right combinations.”

One way to help with snow cover is to plant the winter canola into a good stubble such as wheat or barley. But some crops make it through that way in open winters and others don't. In the Fargo area last year, there was an open winter but the winter canola came out fine.

Genetic components, as well as management components, both play a part in the winter survivability, he added.

Another project Kandel has been involved with has been generating biodiesel on the farm.

They obtained a small press so that the oil could be pressed on the farm. In addition to the oil, meal comes out of the press. The oil can be turned into biodiesel and the meal can be used as feed for livestock, he said.

“The meal still has oil in it so it makes a very good livestock feed,” he said.

The other use is for home or shop heating.

“You can use the biodiesel in the tractor and then use it in the stove for heating,” Kandel said, adding that he worked with Paul Porter in northwestern Minnesota to develop the press for the farm.

Whether it is economical or not depends on how a producer plans to use the product. “You can make biodiesel on the farm but there is a cost involved for making it,” he said.

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