ABOUT REED IN A FEW WORDS   The common reed, Phragmites australis, is a highly distributed species on earth. It is associated to wetland habitats such as marshlands and in the littoral zone of lakes, streams and estuaries and occurs in both fresh- and saltwater  Although the common reed grows with highest success in clay it can grow in a wide variety of soils. The water level limits the species and should not exceed 1–1.5 m during the vegetation period. The plant itself can be divided into two different parts. The above ground level consists of straw, leaf and panicle and dies during the autumn. This part is called the standing crop. The other part of the plant is below ground level and consists of rhizome, which can grow to 1 m down in the sediment, and roots.

BIOMASS   The dead parts of the common reed population can remain for several years and often constitutes the double amount of biomass than the current growing standing crop. The high amount of dead straws in combination with high resistance against decomposition can give rise to a thick detritus layer which can contain a high diversity of benthic fauna. Due to the high amount of detritus, the sediment bed often is an anoxic environment which does not affect the reed. Reed fixates oxygen above the water surface and leads it down to the parts beneath water level. Anoxic conditions can however lead to a lower amount of animals living in the sediment Apart from that the sediment, reed beds are also often used as a feeding and covering area by nektons.

COLONISING   The distribution of the reed can partly be explained by its ability to cope with different types of environments but it has also to do with its effective reproduction. It has been found that reed can undergo ribosomal reproduction as well as spreading seeds. Nutrient inputs from septic runoff and fertilizers use also facilitates the spreading by making the surroundings more eutrophic. Other human activities like limiting tidal flow has also contributed to making it possible for the reed to colonise new areas.

A REAL RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCE   There is nothing much to say about it. Common reed unlike the majority of wood (widely used as biomass raw-material) is a perennial plant.  Every 6th months it reproduces itself, what’s more it is even useful for the plant and its surrounding if harvested regularly.   Autumn and winter harvest ensures a real dry plant of which heating value is just as high as hardwoods’. Being an enviromental-conscious company we must never forget that irrational woodcutting will not help us avoiding further environmental problems. We have a key in our hands that will help us out, and that is nothing else but common reed.