Weeds choke off sunflower biodiesel hopes in North Carolina

In North Carolina, the 25 or so acres of sunflowers planted by Catawba County at the Eco-Complex for biodiesel production that would have fueled county vehicles succumbed to too many weeds, which rendered the first crop of sunflowers useless. Since grass was grown on the plot before planting the sunflowers, the herbicides used pre-planting weren’t enough to clear the site. A few rotations of “Roundup Ready” crops will be planted before trying sunflowers again. However the county also planted canola and soybean for its biodiesel trials, so all isn’t lost.