Switchgrass

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Switchgrass
Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum 'Alamo')

Switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum 'Alamo')

Systematics
Monocots
Commelinids
Order : Sweet grass (Poales)
Family : Sweet grasses (Poaceae)
Genre : Panicum
Type : Switchgrass
Scientific name
Panicum virgatum
L.

The switchgrass ( Panicum virgatum , English switchgrass ) is in the plains of North America Canada based prairie grass . The switchgrass is "Perennial of the Year 2020" .

Distribution of switchgrass in the USA
Panicum virgatum 'Heavy Metal' in early summer
Switchgrass seeds
Switchgrass root system ( The Land Institute , Salina, Kansas)

description

The switchgrass is a perennial herbaceous plant that reaches heights of 0.5–2.5 meters. It has reddish stalks with a round cross-section and can be distinguished from other prairie grasses by the white hair at the base of the leaves. The leaves are 20 to 40 cm long and 0.3 to 1.5 cm wide. The inflorescences are terminal spikes . The switchgrass forms underground rhizomes .

The number of chromosomes is 2n = 36, less often 54.

Occurrence

The switchgrass is native to North America to Honduras , the Bermuda Islands and Cuba . It is a neophyte in Western Europe, East Asia and Brazil.

use

The switchgrass is a C4 plant , which makes it more resistant to drought. Up to 700 plants can be grown per square meter. It is an important pasture grass in the USA and is also planted to protect against soil erosion ; a blade of grass forms roots of around 4 meters and is thus able to bind the sandy soil even when it is dry (which is often the case in the very dry climate of the natural occurrence). Together with other prairie grasses, the plant is the main food of the North American bison native to the prairie ; it is also a very promising candidate for the production of cellulosic ethanol or biodegradable plastics.

Various varieties of switchgrass are used as ornamental plants in Europe :

  • Panicum virgatum 'Hänse Herms': red-brownish, 50 to 80 cm high, clumping plant
  • Panicum virgatum 'Heavy Metal': gray-green, 100 to 120 cm high plant
  • Panicum virgatum 'Heiliger Hain': 80 cm high plant with bluish-green-purple foliage
  • Panicum virgatum 'Rehbraun': 80 cm high plant with red-brown leaves
  • Panicum virgatum 'Strictum': 150 to 180 cm high, brownish colored plant, yellowish in autumn

Synonyms

Well-known synonyms are:

  • Chasea virgata (L.) Nieuwland
  • Milium virgatum (L.) Lunell
  • Panicum giganteum Scheele
  • Panicum glaberri-mum Steudel
  • Panicum purinisum Bernhardi ex Trinius .

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Tropicos. [1]
  2. ↑ a b Rafaël Govaerts (Ed.): Panicum virgatum. In: World Checklist of Selected Plant Families (WCSP) - The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew . Accessed May 31, 2020.
  3. ↑ Phoenix Documentation; Kamil Taylan, Wolf Truchsess von Wetzhausen: The Return of the Buffalo ( Memento from September 22, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) , TV broadcast from September 2, 2010
  4. ^ The San Diego Union-Tribune: Plentiful switch grass emerges as breakthrough biofuel
  5. ↑ MR Schmer, KP Vogel, RB Mitchell, and RK Perrin: Net energy of cellulosic ethanol from switchgrass . In: PNAS . 105, No. 2, 2008, pp. 464-469. doi : 10.1073 / pnas.0704767105 . and a lot of bioethanol for little use . In: Wissenschaft.de. January 8, 2008, accessed September 8, 2019 . (German summary)
  6. ↑ heise online: Energy plant for biodegradable plastic
  7. ↑ Ornamental grass list ( Memento from September 28, 2007 in the Internet Archive )

Web links

Commons : Panicum virgatum  - album with pictures, videos and audio files