- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
The first crop of Giant King Grass, a hybrid grass with biofuel potential, was harvested at the UC Desert Research and Extension Center in Holtville this month, reported Ethanol Producer Magazine.
Giant King Grass is a fast-growing, high-yield grass that grows under a variety of soil conditions, according to Viaspace Green Energy Inc. It is propagated vegetatively and, with sufficient rain or irrigation, can grow 15 to 18 feet high in six months.
At the UC Desert Rec, scientists compared two planting processes:
- Planting single nodes that grow into...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Converting tobacco into cigarettes is a dwindling industry, so scientists are looking for an alternative use for the product grown by tobacco farmers, said an article in the New York Times Green Blog.
Peggy Lemaux, UC Cooperative Extension specialist in the Department of Plant and Microbial Biology at UC Berkeley, shared the idea at the annual meeting of Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, an agency founded to nurture interesting energy ideas that may or may not work.
Some bacteria and algae turn sunlight...
- Author: Brenda Dawson
The (Marysville) Appeal-Democrat checked in on the rice harvest which started recently, with an article by reporter Ashley Gebb. USDA reports that harvested acreage for rice in California is up 6 percent this year, to 588,000 acres; in 2010, Yuba and Sutter counties had approximately 154,000 acres planted in rice. The reporter talked to Chris Greer, UC Cooperative Extension farm advisor for Sutter-Yuba and Colusa counties, about what this summer's cooler weather means for the rice harvest. "Overall...
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
A USDA official was in Oakland yesterday to promote the development of renewable fuel infrastructure in the United States, according to a news release from Propel Fuels. The federal agency plans to fund the build-out of 10,000 renewable fuel pumps across the nation in the next five years.
Judith Canales, administrator of USDA's Rural Business and Cooperative Programs, spoke at a press conference held at a gas station where customers can purchase E85 Flex Fuel and biodiesel from Redwood City-based Propel Fuels.
A story produced by
- Author: Jeannette E. Warnert
Federal law requires annual U.S. production of 36 billion gallons of biofuels by 2022, creating a potentially profitable opportunity for California farmers, according to UC experts quoted in Western Farm Press.
Writer Cary Blake based two stories in the magazine's current issue on the April 2010 Alfalfa, Forages and Biofuels Field Day at the UC Desert Research and Extension Center in El Centro.
The story said UC Davis Cooperative Extension agronomist Steve Kaffka is optimistic about the future of California biofuels production.
"Available solar...