Giant Miscanthus Case Study

The study presented in this thesis form a relationship between soil chemical properties throughout the years within Giant Miscanthus soil. Miscanthus is a perennial, rhizomatous, giant grass that was originated from East Asia and now distributed worldwide. This subtropical plant has C4 photosynthetic pathway and can be grown in warm seasonal weather. These perennial rhizomatous grasses are promising energy crops due to their high productivity, low nutrient requirements, ecosystem services and great potential for C mitigation (Lewandowski et al., 2003a; Rowe et al., 2009; Chum et al., 2011). Giant Miscanthus has different needs for moisture, soil nutrient content, and the amount of radiation it receives. The length of nutrient gradient, with
Soil organic matter (SOM) is known to improve many soil properties such as soil structure, water holding capacity and nutrient supply (Johnston et al. 2009). For this reason, SOM content is commonly seen as the main indicator for soil fertility (Reeves 1997). Giant Miscanthus is adapted to a wide range of soils, from sands to those with high organic matter (Caslin, Finnan, and McCracken 2010). Organic matter within Giant Miscanthus is composed of plant residue and microbial biomass, which consists of many compounds that helps the nutrient of the plant. Organic matter in the soil helps the structure and gives the soil the ability to absorb water and hold its nutrients. There are many functions of organic matter in soil. It provides food for micro-organisms living within the soil. Also, it increases fertility as it possesses cations and hold nutrients in organic forms and releases little nutrients for plant growth and uptake. Furthermore, organic matter holds the soil particles together. When the leaves from the plant of the Giant Miscanthus falls onto the ground it is decomposed into humus. Organic matter releases many plant nutrients as it decomposed into the soil, including nitrogen (N) and Phosphorus (P). This concept of organic matter benefits and holds a great impact on Giant Miscanthus. Therefore, the practices of crop management contribute to
Magnesium in soil solution is equivalent with the exchangeable magnesium available for plants. Originally, magnesium in soil comes from the decomposition of rock containing minerals such as dolomite, brotite, and olivine. Once in the soil magnesium can be leached, absorbed by living organism and by its surrounding particles. In the soils exchangeable magnesium is important for determining the magnesium available for in plants. Magnesium plays a huge role in photosynthesis because without it plants begin to devalue chlorophyll in the old leaves. The uptake of magnesium by Giant Miscanthus is by two main processes. Diffusion which moves magnesium ions from high concentration zones to lower concentration zones and by passive uptake which is driven by transpiration stream. Calcium plays an essential role in plant growth and nutrition. As calcium helps maintain chemical balance in soil it reduces soil salinity and also improves water penetration. Calcium also neutralizes cell acids and plays a role in the removal of carbohydrates. Potassium plays second role to nitrogen when it comes to nutrients needed for plants and soil. It is essential plant nutrient and is required in large quantities for growth and reproduction of plants. Potassium has plenty of roles such as potassium regulates the opening and closing of stomata, photosynthesis, and regulates CO2 uptake. Potassium also plays