Is there an optimum harvest date for biofuels?

Research published recently in the Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture analyses the changes in composition of plant biomasses over time in order to draw conclusions about the optimum harvest date for crops intended for biofuel, suggesting that autumn provides crops with the best balance of characteristics.

The paper, “Chemical characteristics and biofuels potentials of various plant biomasses: influence of the harvesting date” by Godin et al (DOI: 10.1002/jsfa.6159) chart’s the Belgian research group’s chemical analysis of eight different crops harvested on a range of dates in 2009 and 2010. The results showed that in general, early harvest dates benefited anaerobic digestibility while late harvest dates provided the best substrates for combustion and bioethanol production. Fiber corn in particular had the best anaerobic potential at the latest harvesting date, due to its starch content.

The paper concludes that the best balance between harvestable biomass (which decreases in winter), crop dry matter (which increases over time) and other chemical characteristics (which decrease over time) could be obtained with autumn harvesting.

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