Aims Cup plant ( Silphium perfoliatum ) contributes to sustainable bioenergy production. However, little is known about the role of intensive litter fall and increased soil biodiversity on respiration and denitrification in its cultivation. This study aimed to assess CO 2 , N 2 O and N 2 emissions of annual and perennial energy cropping systems affected by earthworms when supplied with senescent cup plant or maize litter. Meth...

European policy recommends that biomass production occur on marginal land, such as poorly draining Stagnosols. Compared to annual cropping, perennial crops may better mitigate N 2 O emissions at such sites, through more complete denitrification. To test that hypothesis, we compared N 2 and N 2 O fluxes from the soils of a perennial crop (cup plant, Silphium perfoliatum L.) and an annual crop (silage maize, Zea mays L.). Intact...

Cup plant cultivation as feedstock for anaerobic digestion has become an emerging topic in European Agriculture. Although there is a gap in methane yields between cup plant and the benchmark crop silage maize, cup plant as a perennial crop provides several ecological advantages. Amongst others, studies have proven its potential for carbon sequestration. With the present study, we addressed the gap in knowledge about biomass pa...