... Virginia sida is the solution

On an annual basis Virginia sida crops several times more per hectare than energy forests. During harvest the moisture content of energy willow is 50-60%, that of poplar is more than 60%, while Virginia sida only contains 16-25% of moisture.

It is not necessary to use any special machine or equipment for harvesting. The plant can be cut and baled with a general reaper, the dried Virginia sida can be harvested with a chaff-cutter as chips. During harvest at the end of winter/beginning of spring, Virginia sida performs really well with its own moisture content of 16% and its calorific value of 18,75 MJ/kg. In Hungary many people argue that propagation of this plant is worrying, due to it being hard to displant, having a scion root and being an alien species, but these worries are unfounded.

Take Poland for instance. Thanks to professors Bolesław Styk and Halina Borkowska from Lublin University of Agriculture (now University of Sciences) and their more than 55 years of professional activity, Virginia sida is now recognized as one of the most important cultivated plants. This means that doubts about the plant are based on incomplete information.

The technical name of the plant is Virginia fanpetals, but, just like other countries in the area (Russia, Moldavia, Germany, Ukraine), we will domesticate the simpler name "Virginia sida". This species grows 20-40 stems from one stool which stems will die back during winter. The best solution is a plantation with 30-120 thousand stools/ha. The plantation will live for 20-30 years. Virginia sida will provide a good harvest on all kinds of lands, even on dry, cohesive or sandy lands having a value of only 10-something AK.   read on...  back...  main page