Co-authors

1. What are the bottlenecks to productive, perennial, polycultures forbioenergy feedstocks?Randy JacksonArea 4-Sustainability Co-leader, GLBRCAssociate Professor of Grassland EcologyAgronomy Department, UW-Madison

2. Co-authors

3. Roadmap for today’s talk • What is sustainability?  ecosystem services • How does/should sustainability work shape GLBRC? • Sustainability research  switchgrass response to N • Discuss limitations and options www.glbrc.org

4. What does sustainable mean?

5. Ecosystem services taken from Foley et al. 2005 www.glbrc.org

6. www.glbrc.org

7. Potential feedstock supply bottlenecks www.glbrc.org Agronomic • Quantity of biomass per unit area  annual monocultures • Planting, management, and harvesting logistics  annual monocultures • Risk/Opportunity cost  annual monocultures Socio-ecological • Individual resistance to change  annual monocultures • Institutional resistance to change • Food vs. Fuel  marginal lands, less productive • Societal resistance • Environmental degradation  perennials, less productive • Anti GMO efforts  less productive • Societal acceptance • Environmental improvement  perennial and diverse (wildlife habitat, water quality, C sequestration, …i.e. less productive)

8. Linking supply-side sustainability traits across levels of organization www.glbrc.org

9. GLBRC sustainability research – understanding tradeoffs among the 3 P’s www.glbrc.org

10. GLBRC Sustainability Research Roadmap www.glbrc.org

11. Novel Production Systems 8 systems x 5 replicate blocks - Established 2008 Rep 3 Rep 5 Rep 2 Rep 1 Rep 4 www.glbrc.org

12. Dimensions of agronomic intensification Native prairie Mixed grassland Corn-soybean-canola Diversity  Switchgrass Poplar Miscanthus Corn-soybean Continuous corn Perenniality  Nutrient inputs Pesticide inputs Litter inputs

13. Sanford et al., unpublished data

14. Oates et al., unpublished data www.glbrc.org

15. What are the tradeoffs for higher production in corn? biogeochemical (data), biodiversity (data) and Miscanthus? biogeochemical?, biodiversity?, uncertainty (data) www.glbrc.org

16. Nitrous oxide fluxes Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial (2009) Oates, Posner & Jackson, unpublished data www.glbrc.org

17. Soil Organic Carbon Wisconsin Integrated Cropping Systems Trial (1989 – 2007) Sanford & Posner, unpublished data www.glbrc.org

18. Soil microbial communities Liang, Balser & Jackson, unpublished data

19. Biodiversity - Positive association with perennial polycultures Mean # plant species Mean # arthropod families # Breeding bird species 80 25 60 25 20 20 40 15 15 20 10 10 0 5 5 Corn Corn Corn Prairie Prairie Prairie Switchgrass Switchgrass Switchgrass 0 0 19 www.glbrc.org

20. Biodiversity - Positive association with perennial polycultures 100 1 10 2008 80 8 0.1 2009 60 6 0.01 40 4 0.001 20 2 0 0 0 Total bees captures per site Mean # genetically distinct methanotroph strains Mean grams predator biomass per sample Corn Corn Corn Prairie Prairie Prairie Switchgrass Switchgrass Switchgrass www.glbrc.org Switchgrass Switchgrass Switchgrass

21. Biodiversity - Positive effects of landscape diversity Proportion pest eggs removed Werling et. al In review www.glbrc.org

22. CRP yields (southern WI) Mean=8.9 Mg/ha

23. Regression tree predicting yield (Mg/ha) of warm-season grasses in southern Wisconsin CRP Farm Soil variables ? Bertjens & Jackson, unpublished data

24. Perennial polycultures will be less productive and more variable than annual monocultures  Agronomic intensification likely What are the ramifications? www.glbrc.org

25. GLBRC-funded experiment at WICST • Cropping System: • Switchgrass • Prairie • Harvest timing: • Summer • Fall • N fertilizer rate: • 0 N • 50 kg/ha N • 150 kg/ha N

26. 2009 Yield Response to N treatment Summer harvest prairie switch 10 n.s. n.s. 5 0 Yield (Mg/ha) 0 50 100 150 0 50 100 150 Fall harvest prairie switch 10 n.s. p = 0.01 5 0 N fertilizer (kg/ha) Smith & Jackson, unpublished data

27. 2010 Yield Response to N treatment Summer harvest prairie switchgrass 10 n.s. p = 0.004 5 Yield (Mg/ha) 0 50 100 150 0 50 100 150 Fall harvest prairie switchgrass 10 p = 0.03 n.s. 5 N fertilizer (kg/ha) Smith & Jackson, unpublished data

29. Switchgrass Assume: N cost $0.50/lb Biomass $70/ton b b b ab ab ab ab a Pennington, unpublished data

30. Switchgrass response to N southern MI (2009 & 2010) (Withers and Thelen, unpublished data)

31. Switchgrass & prairie establishment – southwest WI • Year-1 treatments (2008) • 1. Switchgrass + Glyphosate + 2,4-D • 2. Switchgrass + Glyphosate • 3. Switchgrass + Journey • 4. Diverse mix + Journey • 1. Switchgrass (1 lb a-1) • 2. Sideoatsgrama (1.5 lb a-1) • 3. Indian grass (2 lb a-1) • 4. Big bluestem (2 lb a-1) • 5. Little bluestem (2.5 lb a-1) • 6. IL bundle flower (4 oz a-1) • 7. Yellow coneflower (2 oz a-1) • 8. Partridge pea (8 oz a-1) • 9. Canada milk vetch (8 oz a-1)

32. Year-2 switchgrass & prairie yields Ruark, Renz, & Jackson, unpublished data

33. Switchgrass and prairie response to N weak, highly variable, and dependent on establishment method

34. Switchgrass Leaf N through senescence Jul 27 Nov 15

35. Switchgrass N resorption: end of season a a a b b b Harvest timing of previous season (Samples collected November 3, 2010) Error bars are +/- 1SE; n=6

36. Switchgrass Leaf N green leaves – July 28, 2010 (Day 209) senesced leaves – Nov. 3, 2010 (Day 307) Error bars are +/- 1SE; n=6

37. Summary Area 4 is helping to shape GLBRC portfolio Perennial polycultures  lower & more variable productivity feedstocks Agronomic intensification of perennial grasses likely, which will compromise ecosystem service gains Should look for gains in NUE, NRE, and NRP in perennial grasses Must find ways to pay farmers for providing ecosystem services www.glbrc.org