switchgrass
2
6.6
- noun
- /ˈswɪtʃˌɡræs/
- US
:
grama de switch
- Regarding cellulosic ethanol, I have heard that a plant called "switchgrass" is promising.
- ethanol from switchgrass
- switchgrass yield
- switchgrass crop
Examples
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The humid East might prefer alfalfa to switchgrass as an ethanol source, but switchgrass is ideally suited for the arid West because it needs very little rainfall to grow.
Academic text (2002) -
The last face I saw was partially hidden by a clump of switchgrass.
Fiction book (1994) -
We'd run and hide in the switchgrass.
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Nowadays, they got soybean fuel, switchgrass fuel, algae fuel.
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Tall-grass prairie species include big bluestem, little bluestem, Indian grass, and switchgrass, some of which attain heights of twelve feet by late autumn.
Academic text (1997) -
One ethanol plant manager in the Midwest has calculated that fueling an ethanol plant with switchgrass, a much-discussed alternative, would require delivering a semitrailer truckload of the grass every six minutes, 24 hours a day.
Academic text (2007) -
Researchers are exploring how switchgrass can be used as a sustainable biofuel for energy production.
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Farmers are increasingly planting switchgrass to improve soil quality and provide habitat for wildlife.
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The benefits of switchgrass include its use as animal feed and its ability to grow in poor soil conditions.
Synonyms
A tall North American grass people grow for hay and fuel
A tall North American grass that farmers cut for hay and to prevent soil erosion
Surface Forms
Morphology
Etymology
Switchgrass comes from the English word switch, which means 'a thin, flexible twig', so the name paints the idea of a grass with long, rod-like stems. That's why switchgrass fits this tall North American grass often used for biofuel, animal feed, soil protection and wildlife habitat.