ABSTRACT
Switchgrass Kathrine D. Behrman,1,* Manyowa N. Meki,2 Yanqi Wu3
and James R. Kiniry1,a
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.) is a highly productive, warm season, perennial, C4 grass that is native to most of the central and eastern U.S. (Sanderson et al. 1996). It has a high leaf area index (LAI) and rooting depths of more than 2.0 m, which provide access to large amounts of soil moisture and nutrients (Kiniry et al. 1999). Switchgrass is tolerant of poorly and well-drained soils, nutrient-depleted lands, and low pH, thus allowing it to produce reasonable biomass yields on marginal agricultural soils and under drought stress conditions (Moser and Vogel 1995; McLaughlin et al. 2006; Blanco-Canqui 2010). In addition, switchgrass requires fewer chemical
inputs (fertilizers and pesticides) than traditional row crops and miscanthus (Miscanthus x giganteus J.M. Greef & Deuter ex Hodk. & Renvoize) while maintaining relatively high yearly biomass yields (McLaughlin et al. 2006). These qualities make it one of the leading potential biofuel crops for the Southern and Northern Great Plains (Perlack et al. 2005).
