Field Performance of Saccharum × Miscanthus Intergeneric Hybrids (Miscanes) Under Cool Climatic Conditions of Northern Japan

Suraj Kar, Tzu Ya Weng, Taiken Nakashima, Antonio Villanueva-Morales, J. Ryan Stewart, Erik J. Sacks, Yoshifumi Terajima, Toshihiko Yamada

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Physiological susceptibility to early- and late-season chilling limits commercial production of sugarcane (Saccharum spp. hybrid), a major crop for lignocellulosic biomass, refined sugar, and bioethanol, to tropical and the warmest subtropical regions. Interspecific and intergeneric hybridization have been used to broaden the genetic base of sugarcane and improve its adaptation to temperate climates. Chilling tolerance can be introgressed in sugarcane through intergeneric hybridization with Miscanthus, a cold-tolerant C4 perennial grass, which is genetically homologous to sugarcane. This study evaluated intergeneric F1 hybrids of Saccharum × Miscanthus, miscanes, which included two genotypes of sugarcane × Miscanthus sinensis and sixteen genotypes of sugarcane × Miscanthus sacchariflorus, for their seasonal variation in photosynthesis and biomass production under field conditions in Hokkaido, Japan, to identify promising genotypes and traits, which can be selected to further improve sugarcane. Results showed several of the miscane genotypes had high early- and late-season photosynthesis coupled with high biomass production, which likely indicates chilling tolerance. High broad-sense heritabilities for traits, including stem diameter, tiller number, leaf width, leaf and stem dry weight, and high correlations between these traits and dry matter yield indicate selections can be made efficiently to improve sugarcane. Although none of the miscanes overwintered at the experimental location, we identified miscane “JM 14-09” as a superior genotype for introgression breeding programs and as a potential energycane cultivar for its high biomass-production capacity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)132-146
Number of pages15
JournalBioenergy Research
Volume13
Issue number1
DOIs
StatePublished - Mar 1 2020

Keywords

  • Biomass
  • Heritability
  • Morphology
  • Photosynthesis
  • Sugarcane

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment
  • Agronomy and Crop Science
  • Energy (miscellaneous)

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