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The current context of ecological transition and the fight against climate change have revived interest in short- rotation coppice (SRC) of woody crops for bioenergy or bioproduct purposes. To determine the growth and yield potential of different willow cultivars, plantations were established in five regions of Quebec (Canada) across a wide climatic gradient. The present study compares results obtained after six years of cultivation at two coppicing frequencies (two and three years). Although annual yields approaching 20 tons [ha.sup.-1] have been recorded at several of the study sites, little difference in the productivity of the tested cultivars was found, except for Salix viminalis '5027', which was generally less productive. Overall productivity was weakest at La Morandiere, the northernmost site. Neither frequency of coppicing lead to a difference in yields. At La Pocatiere, one of the coldest regions in this study, yields of cultivars were comparable to those recorded at the southernmost sites. Moreover, the highest cumulative yield after six years was recorded at that site with the cultivar 'SV1'. The fact that yields at most sites remain high after several years is indicative of the production potential of willow crops in SRC for Eastern Canada. Key words: willow crops, short-rotation coppice, biomass production, Salix cultivars, coppicing cycles Le contexte de transition ecologique et la lutte contre le changement climatique ont ravive l'interet pour les cultures sous taillis a courtes rotations (TCR) pour la bioenergie ou la production de bioproduits. Afin de determiner le potentiel de croissance et de rendement de differents cultivars de saules, des plantations ont ete etablies dans cinq regions du Quebec (Canada) le long d'un large gradient climatique. La presente etude compare les resultats obtenus apres six ans de culture selon deux frequences de recepage (deux et trois ans). Bien que des rendements annuels approchant les 20 tonnes par hectare aient ete enregistres sur plusieurs des sites, peu de difference dans la productivite des cultivars testes a ete trouvee, sauf pour S. viminalis '5027,' qui s'est revele generalement moins productif. La productivite globale etait la plus faible a La Morandiere, le site le plus nordique. L'une ou l'autre des frequences de recepage n'a pas conduit a des differences de rendements. Les rendements des cultivars plantes a La Pocatiere, une des regions les plus froides de l'etude, sont comparables a ceux enregistres pour les sites les plus au sud. De plus, le rendement cumule le plus eleve apres six ans a ete enregistre sur ce site, avec le cultivar 'SV1.' Le fait que les rendements demeurent generalement eleves apres plusieurs annees est revelateur du potentiel des cultures de saules en TCR pour l'Est du Canada. Mots-cles : Culture de saules, culture en taillis, production de biomasse, cultivars de Salix, frequence de recepage, Introduction The production of plants for bioenergy purposes reached its peak in the 1990s at the end of the last century. In northern Europe, especially in Sweden, thousands of hectares [...]

Green initiatives and phytotechnologies, such as phytoremediation, hold great potential for the sustainable management of contaminated brownfields. One impediment to these initiatives is the lack of alternatives for the produced biomass due to the potential contamination of plants by trace elements. We conducted an experiment to quantify the accumulation and the translocation patterns of trace elements in the aboveground parts of fifteen desirable plants species used for these kinds of initiatives, i.e. urban predominance, ecological relevance, edibility, commercial prospective, and phytoremediation potential. The experiment was set-up in a tunnel-type greenhouse in which plants were grown in pots filled with contaminated urban soil containing Cu, Zn, Se, Ag and spiked with Cd. Our results indicated that different species exhibited differential abilities to accumulate and translocate trace elements in their aboveground biomass and furthermore, exhibited different bioconcentration factors. A clear exclusion of Cd allocation was observed in fruits and flowers. However, Cd content in edible parts was still above the standard recommendations for human consumption. Our results suggest potential candidates for phytoremediation by revealing different accumulation patterns, also highlighting the importance of characterizing trace elements in the soil for selecting the appropriate plant species based on project's needs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Despite the large popularity of Salix miyabeana for various environmental applications in different parts of the world, most propagation techniques rely mainly on cuttings. However in vitro propagation seems a more reliable solution when selection of new commercial clones and varieties is the goal of propagating willows. The current study is the first attempt to propagate S. miyabeana via in vitro propagation, focusing on two specific aspects: different surface sterilization procedures (i.e. combinations of different sodium hypochlorite concentrations and soaking times) and different types of explants (apical vs. lateral). Our findings show that 3% sodium hypochlorite for 20 min represents the most effective sterilization procedure to ensure healthy plants. Additionally, the material obtained from apical explants showed higher survival rate, budding ability and lower microbiological contamination compared to lateral explants. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]