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Updated 06/16/2008

Crop Research

For more information, e-mail us or call (360) 902-1918.

In 2007, Washington State University (WSU) and WSDA partnered to support $2 million in short-term, applied research on alternative crops for biofuels, oilseed meal co-product development, and anaerobic digester development. Corn is not a part of this biofuels research effort. Crops slated for evaluation include canola/rapeseed, mustard, safflower, winter lupin, camelina, flax, sunflower, soybean, and perennial grasses. The effort includes agronomic evaluation of various canola varieties for Washington microclimate, rainfall and soil-type variations. Early trial results have bolstered producer interest:

Oilseed crops grown in rotation with wheat show significant rotational benefits, including wheat yield gains of approximately 20 percent (Economics of Canola Production for Washington State: Economic analysis of interviews with current dryland and irrigated producers, WSU Center for Sustaining Agriculture and Natural Resources, Kathleen Painter.).
Significant camelina plantings in Montana demonstrated that cropâ€™s potential for Washington dry land farmers.
Western Washington canola trials demonstrated tremendous yield potential. (2006 trials in Snohomish County reached targets of 4,000-4,500 pounds per acre with 40 percent oil yield. Biodiesel Seed Crop Report, Phase I, Sno/Sky Agricultural Alliance, March 2007).

The project will establish the fundamental agronomics (e.g., stand establishment, nutrient requirements, harvest methods, etc.) of biofuels/bioenergy crops, focusing on oilseeds. As a result of the project, Washington growers will:

Understand the basic agronomics of these crops, reducing their risks in growing them.
Understand the benefits of biofuels crops, particularly oilseeds, in their rotations.
Increase consideration of whole-crop system economics, including enterprise budgeting for these new crops.
Improve their understanding of emerging markets/value added possibilities.

Bill Pan, chair of the Department of Crop and Soil Sciences is lead on the WSU bioenergy crop research effort.

Additional resources:
WSU provides an excellent overview of bioenergy crop research efforts in Washington at their Triple BIOTM: BIOAgTM, BIOEnergy, and BIOProducts Website.

The Bioenergy Washington Website provides an abundance of information on bioenergy topics, covering everything from bioenergy crops to regulatory requirements for biofuels production.

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