Removal of miscanthus

periodictable

Wondering if anyone has decided to get rid of their miscanthus crop and return the land to pasture? What operations had you to carry out and what was your experience? Thanks.

bob charles

I have seen it done locally, presume getting a good kill on it is essential when growing. Plough it out and start powerharrowing to break up the roots. Are the Rhizomes worth anything to harvest?

periodictable

They may be but it seems the whole miscanthus project is a bit of a joke at this point. Pal of mine was grant aided but is too far from markets so got permission from dept to remove it.

Grass Hopper

periodictable wrote: »

Wondering if anyone has decided to get rid of their miscanthus crop and return the land to pasture? What operations had you to carry out and what was your experience? Thanks.

Nothing major involved just a good dose of Roundup or equivalent and either harvest as normal or shred and rake the crop for burning.

In with the plough but just deep enough to turn the rhyzomes to the surface. Too deep and you'll only be turning them down again, usually around 4 to 5 inches does the trick.

After that just treat it as a regular field for reseeding.

I'll take a punt you're in the Limerick/Munster area :P

blue5000

Wait until the new green shoots are up in April before you spray with roundup. Were you ever able to sell any of it?

periodictable

Thanks. Too far from markets, sold nothing. Might be a market for rhizomes.

fergus1001

The whole thing is dead in the water as the grass takes in chlorine and when burnt it forms hydrochloric acid and rots the bejayses out of boilers

nhg

They make lovely ornamental grasses in the garden if u could find a market for them, have a few here in a large garden, we always cut them down to the scut this time of the year.

A few fields of them near hear too that never seemed to do to well.

periodictable

Always been suspicious of "energy crops" and the twits that push them.
Back in the 80s same thing with biomass willow. Oil prices sky high then fell so market collapsed. Better to insist on heavy thinning of young plantations and use the thinnings for fuel.

Grass Hopper

fergus1001 wrote: »

The whole thing is dead in the water as the grass takes in chlorine and when burnt it forms hydrochloric acid and rots the bejayses out of boilers

The acid exists lower down in the stem of the plant and the leaf.
Cutting higher and later when the leaf has fallen off would solve this problem but would mean less tonnes/acre from an already low yielding crop

fergus1001

Grass Hopper wrote: »

The acid exists lower down in the stem of the plant and the leaf.
Cutting higher and later when the leaf has fallen off would solve this problem but would mean less tonnes/acre from an already low yielding crop

And thus the economics will no longer stand up