It could be Iowa’s next energy crop: a relative of sugar cane, that looks like bamboo. It’s about to become much more abundant in a state dominated by corn and soybeans.
Miscanthus: Crop of the Future?
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A stalk of miscanthus resembles a thin bamboo fishing pole.
Rick Fredericksen / Iowa Public Radio
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Miscanthus tolerates marginal land and Iowa winters, and has many environmental benefits.
Rick Fredericksen / Iowa Public Radio
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Agronomist Emily Heaton and scientist Nick Boersma are researching miscanthus at ISU.
Rick Fredericksen / Iowa Public Radio
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After Agent Orange, “American grass” was the first thing to grow back in Vietnam’s Mekong Delta. Miscanthus is native to Southeast Asia. ";s:3:
Rick Fredericksen / CBS News
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Until we did our story, we were unaware that an ornamental variety was growing outside our back door in Des Moines.
Rick Fredericksen / Iowa Public Radio
