Pests of selected bioenergy crops

Abstract

The question of energy independence is crucial for many countries in the developed world these days. In addition to solar and wind energy, agriculture and plant production are sources of renewable energy. Crops can be grown for the production of biomass for direct combustion, biofuels, and bio-ethanol. In addition to these benefits, lignocellulosic plants have a huge potential for wide application in industry, construction, paper, automotive, and pharmaceutical industries. However, the yield of products from energy crops depends on many environmental factors, and one of them is their pests. In this article, we reviewed selected energy crops (Amaranthus spp., Cannabis sativa (L.), Panicum virgatum L. and Sida hermaphrodita (L.) Rusby) and their most important pests. Summarizing the literature we discovered that the most prevalent pests are different types of insects as well as viral and fungal pathogens.