AMES, Iowa — Iowa State University Extension and Outreach will host its third annual Miscanthus Grower meeting on Jan. 26 in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The meeting is intended to update the public about progress with the University of Iowa Biomass Fuel Project and provide new information about miscanthus.
The meeting will be divided into two parts, with the morning session open to the public and the afternoon designed for people already working with the Biomass Fuel Project.
Registration for the public session begins at 8 a.m. with the meeting beginning at 8:30 a.m. Emily Heaton, associate professor of agronomy and extension biomass crop specialist at Iowa State University, will host the meeting.
Erin Hazen from the University of Iowa will open the meeting with an update on the Biomass Fuel Project. Travis Hedrick of Repreve Renewables will follow with a discussion about miscanthus production progress. Local farmers also will discuss their experiences growing the crop.
Finally, Mauricio Tejera, a graduate assistant in the Department of Agronomy at Iowa State, will talk about miscanthus research being conducted. In addition, Heaton will facilitate a discussion about the crop.
The Biomass Fuel Project meeting will take place from 1:30-4:30 p.m. for BFP growers and participants only. A farmer round table, information on soil temperature and a detailed miscanthus production update will be provided.
A full agenda and free registration is available online.
The meeting is a collaborative effort of ISU Extension and Outreach, the University of Iowa and Repreve Renewables. The collaboration is supported in part by the Leopold Center for Sustainable Agriculture, the Iowa Energy Center, the Iowa Nutrient Research Center and the United States Department of Agriculture.
— Emily Heaton, Department of Agronomy, Iowa State University Extension and Outreach
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