Summary

Wood biomass production of quickly growing willow on field energetic plantations is a new direction in agricultural production. The success in willow cultivation depends on the biomass crop yield from the area unit, the unit price for manufactured raw material and, in consequence, on the profits. Therefore, certain determinant factors should be carefully considered. A potential planter may, above all, have an influence on the crop amount of willow wood reaped from the area unit. This paper presents the most important information about cultivation technology, cost and energy efficiency of willow production.Willow’s yield varies greatly depending on genetic factors (variety), climate, soil type, agrotechnology, harvesting frequency etc. Average yields of willow are within 10-15 t d.m. /ha/year, with the fluctuation in the limit of 5 tons/ha/year. Harvesting in three years cycle helps to increase the average yield of biomass per year, and provides better quality fuel compared to the shorter harvest rotation. The key to success in willow cultivation is professional and careful agriculture of the plants. It is economically viable to cultivate it in Poland at a price of 5 €/GJ on energy contained in the biomass of these species. Hence it is possible to get about 380 € indirect surplus from one hectare per year. Energy efficiency expressed as the energy yield of willow biomass to total energy expenditure incurred for cultivation and acquisition of willow chips from 1 hectare varies in the range from 10 to 30 depending on harvesting frequency, cultivation and acquisition technologies.

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