Previously underrated as a potential biofuel crop, prairie
cordgrass has gained the interest of University of Illinois (U
of I) crop scientists. Because it is not a good forage crop,
this native grass hasn’t been studied as extensively as
switchgrass, big bluestem, Indiangrass and other energy crops,
according to U of I researchers Lane Rayburn and D.K. Lee. Yet
prairie cordgrass offers sturdy growth on marginal land, no
invasiveness issues, good cold tolerance, and is usefulness for
erosion control, they say. “It’s a great plant,” says Rayburn.
“We know how to control it – it gives good biomass. If I’m going
to work with an energy crop, I want to bring something in that,
environmentally and ecologically, I don’t have to worry about.”
Lee traveled around the country collecting more than 130 natural
populations of prairie cordgrass to examine differences within
the species. He, Rayburn and several colleagues at the Energy
Biosciences Institute – a U of I partner – found several
variations. The South Dakota sam