Switchgrass shows promise for Ky. farmers

The growing market for new energy sources could be providing a new crop for farmers, especially Kentucky tobacco farmers. "A pilot project using switchgrass as an additive to coal being conducted by the University of Kentucky College of Agriculture in conjunction with East Kentucky Power Cooperative and 20 northeastern Kentucky producers is showing hope," Tim Thornberry of Business Lexington reports.  Dr. Ray Smith, a UK forage extension specialist, told Thornberry the initial success of the project should encourage farmers to try it on a larger scale. The current project planted 750 acres of switchgrass, but "an expansion of the project is in the works and is being funded through the Kentucky Forage and Grassland Council from the Kentucky Agricultural Development Fund," funded by the national tobacco settlement with cigarette makers, Thornberry writes. 

"I think the greatest success of the project has been in providing practical advice to farmers on growing an alternative cash crop, and seeing them be successful," Smith told Thornberry. "These 20 farmers and their neighbors who have followed the project will be much more willing to try growing biomass crops on a large scale after seeing the success of the project and gaining the knowledge of how to grow and harvest switchgrass." Two Kentucky droughts since the beginning of the pilot period haven't been enough to slow the switchgrass's growth. "The 20 switchgrass stands grew well this year," Smith said. "Since it is a warm season grass (grows best when temperatures are in the 90's) and is very efficient with water, the heat and dry weather had very little effect on production."

Test burns of the switchgrass  have been successful on a small scale so far, said Nick Comer, spokesman for the power co-op. "It gave us an opportunity to look at, operationally, what we need to do in terms of processing and handling. On the first (burn) we just chopped up the switchgrass and put it in with the coal," he told Thornberry. "Last year we took pelletized switchgrass and mixed it in with the coal. Of course that's much easier to handle but there are costs involved in the process of turning it into pellets." He added "We didn't see anything that would indicate there would be a problem to burn on a much larger scale." (Read more)