DOI: 10.5061/dryad.4tmpg4fhn
title: Data from: Comparative productivity of six bioenergy cropping systems on marginal lands in the Great Lakes Region, United States

description: Growing lignocellulosic crops on marginal lands is a promising solution
 for sustainable biofuel production. We evaluated the productivity of
 bioenergy cropping systems (switchgrass [Panicum virgatum L., var.
 Cave‐In‐Rock], miscanthus [Miscanthus × giganteus, ‘Illinois clone’],
 hybrid poplar [Populus nigra × P. maximowiczii A. Henry ‘NM6’], native
 grasses [five species], early successional vegetation, and restored
 prairie vs. historical vegetation [as reference control]) with and without
 nitrogen fertilization on low‐fertility former cropland at five sites in
 the Great Lakes Region, United States. We reported biomass yields for the
 first 7 years after establishment. Switchgrass was most consistently
 productive across all sites, but miscanthus was more productive at three
 of the five sites. When averaged across sites, years, and nitrogen (N)
 treatments, biomass yields followed the order miscanthus &gt;
 switchgrass &gt; hybrid poplar ≈ native grasses &gt; restored
 prairie &gt; early successional vegetation ≈ historical vegetation,
 but varied substantially by crop and site, with a significant crop by site
 interaction. Yields of miscanthus and switchgrass peaked after four to
 five growing seasons and declined thereafter, while yields of both native
 grasses and restored prairie increased throughout 6 years with no sign of
 follow‐on decline, suggesting that polycultures may outperform
 monocultures over the long term. Yields of early successional
 vegetation—similar in composition to historical vegetation at each
 site—did not improve with time. Nitrogen fertilization increased the
 yields of all cropping systems at all sites. Our results demonstrate the
 viability of low‐productivity former cropland for long‐term bioenergy
 production and suggest there is no single crop best suited for all
 low-fertility soils.
description: See accompanying paper for details.
description: # Data from: Comparative productivity of six bioenergy cropping systems on
 marginal lands in the Great Lakes Region, United States **Title:**
 **Agronomic soil chemistry data from deep core samples - GLBRC-Marginal
 Land Experiment** Description: *year = year soil sampled. *sample_date =
 date of the month soil sampled. *site = marginal land site in Michigan or
 Wisconsin where deep core soil samples collected. *treatment = dedicated
 bioenergy cropping system. G5-G11 include switchgrass, miscanthus, native
 grasses, hybrid poplar, early successional vegetation, restored prairie,
 and historical vegetation control, respectively. *campaign = soil sampling
 method which is deep core sampling (1 m).Each deep core sample consisted
 of four horizons (0-10 cm, 10-25 cm, 25-50 cm, and 50-100 cm). *replicate
 = replicate nested within the treatment. *top_depth_cm = upper soil
 sampling dept given in centimeters. *bottom_depth_cm =lower soil sampling
 depth given in centimeters. *ph = pH of soil solution. *p_ppm = phosphorus
 in soil measured as milligrams per kilogram. *k_ppm = potassium in soil
 measured as milligrams per kilogram. *ca_ppm = calcium in soil measured as
 milligrams per kilogram. *mg_ppm = magnesium in soil measured as
 milligrams per kilogram. *n_treatment = nitrogen treatment of the split
 plot. Data source:
 [https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/438](https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/438) **Title: Dry matter yield data - GLBRC-Marginal Land Experiment** Description: *year = year of the growing season. *harvest_date = date biomass harvested. *site = marginal land site in Michigan or Wisconsin where biomass harvested. *treatment = dedicated bioenergy cropping system. G5-G11 include switchgrass, miscanthus, native grasses, hybrid poplar, early successional vegetation, restored prairie, and historical vegetation control, respectively. *replicate = replicate nested within the treatment. *crop = dedicated bioenergy cropping system. *field_section = section of the field. *n_treatment = nitrogen treatment of the split plot. Split-plot treatments were initiated in 2014-2016 to examine the effect of nitrogen fertilization [plus_n (+N) vs control (0N)] on all cropping systems. *area_harvested_ft2 = area harvested in squarefoot. *dry_matter_yield_mg_ha = dry matter yield given as mega grams per hectare. Biomass was harvested by machine harvesting herbaceous perennial treatments (G5-G7 and G9-G10), clear-cut harvesting poplar (G8), and hand-sampling historical vegetation reference (G11).G11 was hand-harvested at 3 stations per split plot from 2015-2017 and since 2018 at 2 stations per split plot. *moisture_at_harvest = percent moisture measured at harvest as grams per hectogram. Data source: [https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/465](https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/465) **Title: Volumetric water content - GLBRC-Marginal Land Experiment** Description: *location = location of the weather station. *datetime = date and time in coordinated universal time. *vwc_avg = cubic centimeters of water per cubic centimeter of soil within 10 cm fraction. Volumetric water content data with 10 cm fraction were not available from Michigan Central. *vwc_2_avg = cubic centimeters of water per cubic centimeter of soil within 25 cm fraction. Volumetric water content data within 25 cm fraction were not available from Michigan Central. Data source: [https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/507](https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/507) **Title: Species composition - GLBRC-Marginal Land Experiment** Description: *sample_date = the date at which the species surveyed at or near maturity of the dominant plant species using the line point intercept method. *site = marginal land site in Michigan or Wisconsin where species sampled. *plot = dedicated bioenergy cropping system and their replicates sampled. G5-G11 include switchgrass, miscanthus, native grasses, hybrid poplar, early successional vegetation, restored prairie, and historical vegetation control, respectively. *subplot = nitrogen treatment of the split plot. *line = transect line sampled using the line-point intercept method. The Line-point intercept method consists of employing a pin/point along a set of transects to arrive at an estimate of cover. *species = name of the species sampled. Data source: [https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/592](https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/592) **Title: Stand counts - GLBRC-Marginal Land Experiment** Description: *sample_date = date stand counts taken in 2017 and 2019. *experiment = name of the experiment. *treatment = dedicated bioenergy cropping system. G5-G7 and G10 include switchgrass, miscanthus, native grasses, and restored prairie, respectively. *site = marginal land site in Michigan or Wisconsin where stand counts taken. *replicate = replicate nested within the treatment. *n_treatment = nitrogen treatment of the split plot. *average_stand_count = stand counts measured as plants per square meter. Stand counts were not applicable for early successional and historical vegetation. Data source: [https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/620](https://data.sustainability.glbrc.org/datatables/620)