For both of the
species, the greatest growth rate was found during August, when
vegetative growth peaked. When analysing the different growth
stages of the two species, differences were found above all
regarding crop development stage and the mid-season stage,
which were found to be longer for A. donax for both years. Overall,
taking the duration of all the growth stages into consideration, the
initial stage was found to be the shortest whilst crop development
state was the longest and was found to be between the beginning
of May and the end of July. The flowering stage for C. alternifolius
occurred mid-July and at the beginning of July during 2012 and
2013 respectively, whilst senescence for the above-ground
biomass occurred on average at the end of September. As regards
A. donax, flowering occurred at the end of July and at the
beginning of August but was found to be less abundant, in terms of