Biochar and Vermicompost Amendments Affect Substrate Properties and Plant Growth of Basil and Tomato

Abstract

The suitability of biochar (BC) as a container substrate depends on the BC mix ratio and plant species. Mixes with mixed hardwood BC (20%, 40%, 60%, and 80%, by volume) and vermicompost (VC; 5%, 10%, 15%, and 20%, by volume) were evaluated as container substrates on basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L. ‘Roma’) plants compared to a commercial peat-based substrate (CS). The CS made up the rest of the volume when BC and VC did not add up to 100%. The total porosity of all mixes with BC, VC, and CS (BC:VC:CS mixes) was similar to the control. Mixes with 80% BC had lower container capacity than the control. At 9 weeks after transplanting, the leachate pH of all the BC:VC:CS mixes was higher than that of the control, except for mixes of 20%BC and 5%VC with the rest (75%) being CS (20BC:5VC:75CS) and 20BC:10VC:70CS with tomato plants. The soil plant analysis development (SPAD) readings in BC:VC:CS mixes were similar to or higher than the control except for tomato plants in 80BC:5VC:15CS, 80BC:15VC:5CS, and 80BC:20VC:0CS mixes. Plants in BC:VC:CS mixes had similar growth indexes and total dry weight with respect to those in 100% CS, with the root DW of basil plants in 60BC:15VC:25CS being the highest among all treatments. Therefore, the BC (20%, 40%, 60%, or 80%, by volume) and VC (5%, 10%, 15%, or 20%, by volume) mixes had the potential to replace CS for container-grown plants, with the estimate wholesale price for 80BC:5VC:15CS was only 61.6% that of the control.

Microbe-Plant Growing Media Interactions Modulate the Effectiveness of Bacterial Amendments on Lettuce Performance Inside a Plant Factory with Artificial Lighting

“…Sustainable alternatives are being investigated and a variety of these are on the market (e.g., coir pith, wood fiber, composted materials, biochar, etc.) [6,8,[12][13][14][15][16]. Nevertheless, peat will remain an essential plant growing medium constituent, for dilution purposes at any rate as it allows the blending of alternative and circular raw materials [7].…”

Effect of different vermicomposts and bioslurry on growth, yield and postharvest quality of statice

“…Atiyeh et al (2000) observed faster growth on tomatoes when vermicompost was applied compared to the control probably due to supply of phosphorus and calcium, important nutrients for cell growth and development. While working with basil (Ocimum basilicum L.) and tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L. "Roma"), Huang et al (2020) reported superior growth indexes from substrates mixes combining vermicompost and commercial peat-based substrate which they attributed to favourable substrate amendment including higher pH and better porosity. Furthermore, the reviews by Bhat et al (2018) and Joshi et al (2015) on effects of vermicomposts on growth, yield and quality of crops, assert that the enhanced observations on the studied parameters are due to positive effects of higher amounts of humic substances in the bio fertilizers on growth of plants.…”

Introduksi Teknologi Biochar Untuk Memperbaiki Lahan Kritis Milik Petani Wilayah Magersari Di Kabupaten Tuban, Propinsi Jawa Timur

“…Penggunaan biochar dapat memperbaiki sifat tanah dan ketersediaan unsur hara tanah dalam jangka panjang (Agegnehu et al, 2017). Penggunaan biochar dapat meningkatkan produktivitas tanah melalui perbaikan sifat fisika, kimia (Aslam et al, 2014), (Jien & Wang, 2013), (Li et al, 2018), (Mukherjee & Lal, 2013), (Shaaban et al, 2018), (Wu et al, 2017), biologi tanah (Hussain et al, 2017) dan perbaikan struktur tanah (Bista et al, 2019), (Cybulak et al, 2019) serta porositas tanah (Huang et al, 2020), (Liu et al, 2018). Aplikasi biochar sangat penting untuk meningkatkan sifat fisik dan kimia tanah asam (Dume et al, 2015).…”