Seven Weeds That Could Power Your Car
Tina Casey, September 30th, 2009, Gas2.org
Jatropha could be cultivated as a biofuel crop.
Image: prashantby on flickr.com.
With the attention on first generation corn ethanol fading, the next big thing on the sustainable fuel horizon is nonfood biofuel crops. Within that category, inedible weeds are taking a front-row seat due to their relatively low demands on water, pesticides, and herbicides, and their reduced need for tilling and other mechanized soil prep. Some weeds with biofuel potential can also thrive on contaminated soils, absorbing and cleaning pollutants in a process called phytoremediation.
One big caveat on weed biofuel is the risk of letting invasive species run wild off cultivated fields and overwhelming native species, but if that concern can be allayed through proper management, you may soon find these deceptively delicate looking weeds pulling enough power to beat out the tiger for a place in your tank.
Image: karenphillips on flickr.com.
2. Amaranthus
Also known as pigweed, Amaranthus is a highly competitive, classified noxious weed that proves how good bad can be. The pesky little devil has garnered praises from researchers at the University of New Mexico for its ideal traits as a biofuel crop including drought tolerance, high rate of photosynthesis, and resistance to disease and pests.
Image: Just chaos on flickr.com.
3. Kudzu
Biofuel could be the redemption song for kudzu, the voracious creeper known as “the plant that ate the south.”Aside from absorbing trees and bushes into an eerie green moonscape, kudzu boasts a hi-carb content that could be converted to ethanol using a yeast-based process. To offset the expense of harvesting kudzu from the steep hillsides that it favors, researchers point out that there are no costs for fertilizing, irrigating, or planting the invader, which was imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1870’s.
Image: Alabama kudzu by Alarob on flickr.com.
4. Arundo donax (giant cane)
Able to grow almost three inches per day in the summer, giant cane (Arundo donax) could be the superhero of the biofuel world, producing multiple harvests every year on poor soil. Left unmanaged, though, it turns to the dark side. At least six states from California to Maryland have reported it as an invasive species.
Image: Shizahao on wikimedia.org (creative commons license).
5. Castor
The lovely castor plant is a noxious weed in Australia, introduced in 1803 and firmly establishing itself as a pest in every state except Tasmania. Meanwhile over in Israel, the company Kaiima Bio-Agritech believes that it has found a way to manipulate the chromosomes of biofuel crops to double their yield, with castor showing particular promise - at least in countries where it can be cultivated without overwhelming native species.
7. Chinese Tallow
We have none other than Benjamin Franklin to thank for Chinese Tallow, also known as Florida Aspen or more colorfully as the Gray Popcorn tree. It grows profusely in ditches and dikes from South Carolina through the entire Gulf Coast. Though trees aren’t usually thought of as weeds, the Chinese Tallow is in a class by itself: considered a noxious invader in the U.S., it joins algae and palm oil among the top three vegetable oil crops.
Image and background information: BaylorBear78 on flickr.com.
Image: pizzodisevo on flickr.com.
------------------------------------------END OF ARTICLE -------------------------------------------------
I really like the ability of some of these plants to remediate the soil and air pollution that already exists. Looks like power the world and clean it up at the same time. Nice dream anyway.
Jatropha could be cultivated as a biofuel crop.
Image: prashantby on flickr.com.
With the attention on first generation corn ethanol fading, the next big thing on the sustainable fuel horizon is nonfood biofuel crops. Within that category, inedible weeds are taking a front-row seat due to their relatively low demands on water, pesticides, and herbicides, and their reduced need for tilling and other mechanized soil prep. Some weeds with biofuel potential can also thrive on contaminated soils, absorbing and cleaning pollutants in a process called phytoremediation.
One big caveat on weed biofuel is the risk of letting invasive species run wild off cultivated fields and overwhelming native species, but if that concern can be allayed through proper management, you may soon find these deceptively delicate looking weeds pulling enough power to beat out the tiger for a place in your tank.
Image: karenphillips on flickr.com.
2. Amaranthus
Also known as pigweed, Amaranthus is a highly competitive, classified noxious weed that proves how good bad can be. The pesky little devil has garnered praises from researchers at the University of New Mexico for its ideal traits as a biofuel crop including drought tolerance, high rate of photosynthesis, and resistance to disease and pests.
Image: Just chaos on flickr.com.
3. Kudzu
Biofuel could be the redemption song for kudzu, the voracious creeper known as “the plant that ate the south.”Aside from absorbing trees and bushes into an eerie green moonscape, kudzu boasts a hi-carb content that could be converted to ethanol using a yeast-based process. To offset the expense of harvesting kudzu from the steep hillsides that it favors, researchers point out that there are no costs for fertilizing, irrigating, or planting the invader, which was imported to the U.S. from Asia in the 1870’s.
Image: Alabama kudzu by Alarob on flickr.com.
4. Arundo donax (giant cane)
Able to grow almost three inches per day in the summer, giant cane (Arundo donax) could be the superhero of the biofuel world, producing multiple harvests every year on poor soil. Left unmanaged, though, it turns to the dark side. At least six states from California to Maryland have reported it as an invasive species.
Image: Shizahao on wikimedia.org (creative commons license).
5. Castor
The lovely castor plant is a noxious weed in Australia, introduced in 1803 and firmly establishing itself as a pest in every state except Tasmania. Meanwhile over in Israel, the company Kaiima Bio-Agritech believes that it has found a way to manipulate the chromosomes of biofuel crops to double their yield, with castor showing particular promise - at least in countries where it can be cultivated without overwhelming native species.
7. Chinese Tallow
We have none other than Benjamin Franklin to thank for Chinese Tallow, also known as Florida Aspen or more colorfully as the Gray Popcorn tree. It grows profusely in ditches and dikes from South Carolina through the entire Gulf Coast. Though trees aren’t usually thought of as weeds, the Chinese Tallow is in a class by itself: considered a noxious invader in the U.S., it joins algae and palm oil among the top three vegetable oil crops.
Image and background information: BaylorBear78 on flickr.com.
Image: pizzodisevo on flickr.com.
------------------------------------------END OF ARTICLE -------------------------------------------------
I really like the ability of some of these plants to remediate the soil and air pollution that already exists. Looks like power the world and clean it up at the same time. Nice dream anyway.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Allen R. Gale on -
Amazing!! I have known about some of these but the BIG winner has to be Kudzu! I don't know how it is in Alabama but here in Georgia that stuff is smothering EVERYthing! Can you imagine how many unemployed people with trucks could be put to work harvesting that stuff??
Amazing!!
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Permalink Reply by W. Dan Chance on -
Are we talking here about intentionally spreading this weed? Ok, yeah, I did start it. Yes Alabama has an abundance of Kudzu. Roanoke has some unused rail lines that are now swallowed whole by this weed.
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Permalink Reply by Kurt Stiffel on -
Hi folks, I remember a study where they grew Hemp in the middle of a freeway and as it grew it recycled the pollutants from the exhaust! If we could just get out of mother natures way...or show Big Oil how to profit from this so they'd get out of our way.
Thanks for the post Dan- great stuff. Kindest Regards, Kurt
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Permalink Reply by George F. Oerther, Jr. on -
Chance, there are two more that need to be added to the list: Johnson Grass and annual sunflowers. The mix of Johnson Grass, Amaranthus (carelessweed), and annual sunflowers that grow up on fallowed cropland is very prolific as a cellulose ethanol source. And I am glad that soeone else is finally picking up on the need to initiate a food/fuel/fallow cropping cycle to maintain the balance between food and energy and protect the health of the land.
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Permalink Reply by W. Dan Chance on
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Hi George, Always glad to see you joining in. I kinda thought you'd find this interesting. Can you write a paragraph about each of these and post a photo of them?
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Permalink Reply by Allen R. Gale on
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Dan, Kudzu has already internationally spread! That is our main problem with it. It has no natural "enemies" here. I always thought that something as esthetically pleasing (to loo at) and prolific should have some economical potential and I am glad to find out it really does!
I guess next thing is to find out if it can be processed in and with the same equipment as corn as that would make it, and other weeds, direct replacements for corn. I think that is the only way we can ever hope to float this idea since the corn-ethanol is a product of the corn growers and DOE consortium and will be VERY difficult to displace due to the political connections.
Hello, George - always good to see your input. I have learned so much from you guys on this site and always happy to hear from you. I just wish there was some way we could get together efficiently and actually DO something.
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Permalink Reply by Kevin Espeseth on -
Q:?
Is Hemp good for high blood pressure?
(Other than to those that oppose the involvement into society?)
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Permalink Reply by KENN DRESCHER on -
All of the above. How many truck loads to brew 1,000 gallons?
I suggest: Micro Distillerys. They work for Beer, why not Bio Diesel from waste cooking oil? And Ethanol from these, and any other veggie source? Ck-Out:
Taste of St Louis
They run all their Generators on recycled waste cooking oil; bio diesel.
This could be accomplished on a Metro basis. Build a Petro Alage Farm adjacent to the Distillery and vent the CO2 + heat up through the growing P. A. Or, do as Archer Danials Midland used to do - vent to a series of adjoined Green Houses.
If worse gets to worst, the President could proclaim that all Ethanol, currently distilled for human consumption, be instead converted to: Wood Alakyhaul... and make E-25 out of it... Sure we'd have plenty of fuel...
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Permalink Reply by Jim Martin on -
One prospect that should be examined is to use harvest fruits or vegetables from plants, then use the remaining part of the plant as a fuel source. I suspect that most plants could be used with the proper approach, perhaps including solar drying like we do for hay after it is cut.
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Permalink Reply by Allen R. Gale on
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OK, guys! I think it is time to see about the "rest of the story" - what needs to be done to effect the processing. I have researched it somewhat, trying to get info from the DOE and Agriculture Dept. but so far not much useful except that small plants, like individual farmers or farm co-ops might set up, are possible. Let's see if we can come up with specifics, like distillery requirements, area req's, energy input req's and the like and maybe - just MAYBE - we can influence our states or cities to do something rational about this.
I doubt if it will get beyond the talking stage if we don't. What do yhou say? Give it a try?
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Permalink Reply by KENN DRESCHER on
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To the contary...
Farmers, back in the 20's had large stills capable of making Ethanol, mostly from corn, to power their tractors. Heat. And run a Model T which had a wire toggle on the carb to switch back to gasoline, which was just becomming available. And, yes, I read that those opposed to Ethanol as fuel argued then, as now that using corn to make fuel was taking food out of some1's mouth.... Wonder how they figured the fields were gonna get plowed w/o fuel???
After passage of the Volstead Act, Feds like Elliott Ness ramsacked through the Farms, calling these ethanol stills, Moonshine Stills. All the evidence they needed was 1 Lil Brown Jug fulla Moonshine, with a cob cork, and they torched the Stills. When I moved to TN 20 years ago, I saw some of the burnt out hulks of a few Stills, still rusting away...
I suspect that Carry Nations, had an adjenda, but so did Oil Companys whom profited overwhelmingly when Farmers were forced to go into town, and truck gasoline back to the Farms. Eventually, many of them got their own gasoline storage Tanks, and Pumps, and Stilling Fuel became a lost Art.
Americans have been lied to, and manipulated by Our Government, and big business through out Our History. The greatest offenders, probably the biggest Cons of all time were the: Bush Adminstration, and the Fools whom supported him... Unless Your 1 of the Cronies whom profited via their crimes.
If there is Right, and Wrong, as a moral quality, than WE must ferrit it out!
As I'm wondering if: The Natural Gas Act, w/o protection of Aquifers; The Frac Act, is morally correct?
Are, Our we being mislead?
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Permalink Reply by Patrick Daniel on -
Do you think a greenhouse condominium powered by solar would be useful in growing Jathropa thereby reducing the land consumption.
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