The DOI matches its Crossref record; 13 of the 13 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Effects of biochar compared to organic and inorganic fertilizers on soil quality and plant growth in a greenhouse experiment
Abstract
Our contemporary society is struggling with soil degradation due to overuse and climate change. Pre‐Columbian people left behind sustainably fertile soils rich in organic matter and nutrients well known as terra preta (de Indio) by adding charred residues (biochar) together with organic and inorganic wastes such as excrements and household garbage being a model for sustainable agriculture today. This is the reason why new studies on biochar effects on ecosystem services rapidly emerge. Beneficial effects of biochar amendment on plant growth, soil nutrient content, and C storage were repeatedly observed although a number of negative effects were reported, too. In addition, there is no consensus on benefits of biochar when combined with fertilizers. Therefore, the objective of this study was to test whether biochar effects on soil quality and plant growth could be improved by addition of mineral and organic fertilizers. For this purpose, two growth periods of oat (Avena sativa L.) were studied under tropical conditions (26°C and 2600 mm annual rainfall) on an infertile sandy soil in the greenhouse in fivefold replication. Treatments comprised control (only water), mineral fertilizer (111.5 kg N ha–1, 111.5 kg P ha–1, and 82.9 kg K ha–1), compost (5% by weight), biochar (5% by weight), and combinations of biochar (5% by weight) plus mineral fertilizer (111.5 kg N ha–1, 111.5 kg P ha–1, and 82.9 kg K ha–1), and biochar (2.5% by weight) plus compost (2.5% by weight). Pure compost application showed highest yield during the two growth periods, followed by the biochar + compost mixture. biochar addition to mineral fertilizer significantly increased plant growth compared to mineral fertilizer alone. During the second growth period, plant yields were significantly smaller compared to the first growth period. biochar and compost additions significantly increased total organic C content during the two growth periods. Cation‐exchange capacity (CEC) could not be increased upon biochar addition while base saturation (BS) was significantly increased due to ash addition with biochar. On the other hand, compost addition significantly increased CEC. Biochar addition significantly increased soil pH but pH value was generally lower during the second growth period probably due to leaching of base cations. Biochar addition did not reduce ammonium, nitrate, and phosphate leaching during the experiment but it reduced nitrification. The overall plant growth and soil fertility decreased in the order compost > biochar + compost > mineral fertilizer + biochar > mineral fertilizer > control. Further experiments should optimize biochar–organic fertilizer systems.
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Cites
Glaser, B., Lehmann, J., & Zech, W. (2002) · Biology and Fertility of Soils · doi:10.1007/s00374-002-0466-4 · Cited by 2,890 · cited 5×
“Biochar has proven positive effects on nutrient retention (Glaser et al., 2002; Lehmann et al., 2003; Bélanger et al., 2004; Major et al., 2010), cation-exchange capacity (CEC) (Tryon, 1948; Mikan and Abrams, 1995; Glaser et al.”
BackgroundInfluentialJeffery, S., Verheijen, F. G. A., van der Velde, M., & Bastos, A. C. (2011) · Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment · doi:10.1016/j.agee.2011.08.015 · Cited by 2,422
Black Carbon Increases Cation Exchange Capacity in Soils
Liang, B., Lehmann, J., Solomon, D., Kinyangi, J., Grossman, J., O'Neill, B., Skjemstad, J. O., Thies, J., Luizão, F. J., Petersen, J., et al. (2006) · Soil Science Society of America Journal · doi:10.2136/sssaj2005.0383 · Cited by 2,191
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Agronomic values of greenwaste biochar as a soil amendment
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Lehmann, J., Pereira da Silva, J., Steiner, C., Nehls, T., Zech, W., & Glaser, B. (2003) · Plant and Soil · doi:10.1023/a:1022833116184 · Cited by 1,878
Self-citationPositive and negative carbon mineralization priming effects among a variety of biochar-amended soils
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Biochar and the Nitrogen Cycle: Introduction
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Production and characterization of bio-oil and biochar from rapeseed cake
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Cited by
Biochar and its effects on plant productivity and nutrient cycling: A meta-analysis
Biederman, L. A., & Harpole, W. S. (2013) · GCB Bioenergy · doi:10.1111/gcbb.12037 · Cited by 1,737
A Review of Biochar and Soil Nitrogen Dynamics
Clough, T., Condron, L., Kammann, C., & Müller, C. (2013) · Agronomy · doi:10.3390/agronomy3020275 · Cited by 969
“In sandy soils this biochar input may be significant in terms of CEC, but may also be insignificant [27], while for”
BackgroundThe role of biochar and biochar-compost in improving soil quality and crop performance: a review
Agegnehu, G., Srivastava, A. K., & Bird, M. I. (2017) · Applied Soil Ecology · doi:10.1016/j.apsoil.2017.06.008 · Cited by 928
Xiao, X., Chen, B., Chen, Z., Zhu, L., & Schnoor, J. L. (2018) · Environmental Science & Technology · doi:10.1021/acs.est.7b06487 · Cited by 914
Agegnehu, G., Bass, A. M., Nelson, P. N., & Bird, M. I. (2016) · Science of The Total Environment · doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2015.11.054 · Cited by 909
Metadata
- Authors
- Schulz, H., & Glaser, B.
- Venue
- Journal of Plant Nutrition and Soil Science
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2012-03-22
- Volume
- 175
- Issue
- 3
- Pages
- 410-422
- ISSN
- 1436-8730 (ISSN-L)
- 1522-2624
- OpenAlex
- W2086498947
- Cited by
- 526
- References
- 13
- FWCI
- 38.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
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