Adaptation of Giant Miscanthus in North-West Region Conditions

Yaroslav-the-Wise Novgorod State University, 41 Bolshaya Sankt-Peterburgskaya Street, 173003, Veliky Novgorod, Russia

^* Corresponding author: yaroslava-66@mail.ru

Abstract

The introduction of a highly productive species of the giant miscanthus (Miscanthus giganteus L.) with high cellulose content in the stems and the extension of the cultivation boundaries of promising varieties and decorative species is relevant. Miscanthus sinensis is native to the southern Primorsky region. This is a perennial herbaceous plant of the Poaceae family, the Panicoideae subfamily. In many countries, the technology of its cultivation is well developed to preserve slowly renewable forest areas. In the early 2000s, in Russia, there was a strong interest in miscanthus, and a promising species was created — the giant miscanthus, a natural hybrid of Miscanthus sinensis and Miscanthus sacchariflorus. This hybrid does not form inflorescences and does not produce seeds, it reproduces only vegetatively in the conditions of moderate climate of the European part of Russia. Domestic breeders have created the Kamis variety, which in the conditions of the middle strip of Russia gives stable yields up to 15 tons of air-dry mass per hectare. Experiments have been carried out on fallow land and agricultural land in the Oratai agricultural production cooperative to study the characteristics of growth, development and formation of the crop of above-ground mass of the Kamis variety in agro-ecological conditions of the Novgorod region. The characteristics of plant growth and development have been identified depending on weather and soil conditions. The region has about 600 mm of rainfall, which is a limiting factor for miscanthus plants. The development of superterrestrial organs of giant miscanthus plants and their role in crop formation have been established. The creation of highly productive plantations of the giant miscanthus will increase the number of species in the flora of the Novgorod region as a biologically renewable resource.