Winter Canola for on-Farm Bioenergy Production: Effects of Planting Date and Variety on Oil Yield and Meal Quality in Tennessee.

Winter canola is an economically-viable option for farmers to produce and convert into biodiesel on a small-scale basis for use on their own farm.  There is little information, however, related to varieties of winter canola and planting dates that will produce the greatest oil yields and other characteristics important for biodiesel.  Thirty-five to 40 different varieties of winter canola were planted in 2014 and 2015 in Tennessee as part of the National Winter Canola Variety trials.  These varieties were also planted at three different planting dates each year and harvested subsamples were analyzed by NIR to determine overall oil yield and quality and meal yield and quality.  Comparisons between laboratory analyses of oil content and extractable oil yields were also made.