Designer Biochars Impact on Corn Grain Yields, Biomass Production, and Fertility Properties of a Highly-Weathered Ultisol

Novak, Jeffrey M.; Sigua, Gilbert C.; Ducey, Thomas F.; Watts, D. W.; Stone, K. C.

doi:10.3390/environments6060064

Cited by 21 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 45 publications

(52 reference statements)

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“…The possible reason may be that the biochar addition improved the soil quality and increased the N uptake, DM, N metabolism activity, and grain yield; thus, the quality traits were also improved. Our results were similar to those of Novak et al (2019) and Fahad et al (2016), who found that biochar improved corn yield and quality as a result of higher amino acid availability due to greater N availability. Fahad et al (2016) reported that biochar amendment increased rice grain quality, photosynthetic rate, water-use efficiency, and grain size.…”

Section: Quality Traitssupporting

confidence: 91%

Combined application of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer improves rice yield, microbial activity and N-metabolism in a pot experiment

Ali

Ullah

et al. 2020

PeerJ

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The excessive use of synthetic nitrogen (N) fertilizers in rice (Oryza sativa L.) has resulted in high N loss, soil degradation, and environmental pollution in a changing climate. Soil biochar amendment is proposed as a climate change mitigation tool that supports carbon sequestration and reduces N losses and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from the soil. The current study evaluated the impact of four different rates of biochar (B) (C/B0-0 t ha−1, B1-20 t ha−1, B2-40 t ha−1, and B3-60 t ha−1) and two N levels (N1; low (270 kg N ha−1) and N2; high (360 kg N ha−1)), on rice (cultivar Zhenguiai) grown in pots. Significant increases in the average soil microbial biomass N (SMBN) (88%) and carbon (87%) were recorded at the highest rate of 60-ton ha−1B and 360 kg N ha−1 compared to the control (N1C) during both seasons (S1 and S2). The photochemical efficiency (Fv/Fm), quantum yield of the photosystem (PS) II (ΦPS II), electron transport rate (ETR), and photochemical quenching (qP) were enhanced at low rates of biochar applications (20 to 40 t B ha−1) for high and low N rates across the seasons. Nitrate reductase (NR), glutamine synthetase (GS), and glutamine 2-oxoglutarate aminotransferase (GOGAT) activity were, on average, 39%, 55%, and 63% higher in the N1B3, N2B2, and N2B3 treatments, respectively than the N1C. The grain quality was higher in the N1B3 treatment than the N1C, i.e., the protein content (PC), amylose content (AC), percent brown rice (BRP), and percent milled rice (MRP) were, on average, 16%, 28%, 4.6%, and 5% higher, respectively in both seasons. The results of this study indicated that biochar addition to the soil in combination with N fertilizers increased the dry matter (DM) content, N uptake, and grain yield of rice by 24%, 27%, and 64%, respectively, compared to the N1C.

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Section: Quality Traitssupporting

confidence: 91%

Combined application of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer improves rice yield, microbial activity and N-metabolism in a pot experiment

Ali

Ullah

et al. 2020

PeerJ

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“…For all five treatments, total above-ground mean corn stover removed from the plots ranged from 1618 to 6757 kg ha −1 . Overall aerial biomass production for the 0% removal treatment was similar to that reported by [36,37]. Those two studies reported corn stover production from 7683 to 8350 and 5934 to 9340 kg ha −1 , respectively, for studies with multiple years of corn grown on pedogenically similar Ultisols (i.e., Goldsboro, Norfolk, Rains series) with similar agronomic practices.…”

Section: Stover Harvest Ratessupporting

confidence: 78%

Corn Stover Removal Responses on Soil Test P and K Levels in Coastal Plain Ultisols

et al. 2021

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Corn (Zea mays L.) stover is used as a biofuel feedstock in the U.S. Selection of stover harvest rates for soils is problematic, however, because excessive stover removal may have consequences on plant available P and K concentrations. Our objective was to quantify stover harvest impacts on topsoil P and K contents in the southeastern U.S. Coastal Plain Ultisols. Five stover harvest rates (0, 25, 50, 75 and 100% by wt) were removed for five years from replicated plots. Grain and stover mass with P and K concentration data were used to calculate nutrient removal. Mehlich 1 (M1)-extractable P and K concentrations were used to monitor changes within the soils. Grain alone removed 13–15 kg ha−1 P and 15–18 kg ha−1 K each year, resulting in a cumulative removal of 70 and 85 kg ha−1 or 77 and 37% of the P and K fertilizer application, respectively. Harvesting stover increased nutrient removal such that when combined with grain removed, a cumulative total of 95% of the applied P and 126% of fertilizer K were taken away. This caused M1 P and K levels to decline significantly in the first year and even with annual fertilization to remain relatively static thereafter. For these Ultisols, we conclude that P and K fertilizer recommendations should be fine-tuned for P and K removed with grain and stover harvesting and that stover harvest of >50% by weight will significantly decrease soil test M1 P and K contents.

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“…In terms of feedstock, understanding how initial feedstock properties influence final biochar characteristics is important. Feedstocks have been shown to play a major role in creating biochars with distinctly different chemical properties (Funke and Ziegler 2010;Novak et al 2019b). In relative terms, wood-based biochars contain more C and lower plantavailable nutrients, manure-based biochars show opposite trends, and grass-based biochars typically fall somewhere in between woody and manure biochars (Ippolito et al 2015).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feedstock choice, pyrolysis temperature and type influence biochar characteristics: a comprehensive meta-data analysis review

Ippolito

Cui

Kammann

et al. 2020

Biochar

391

202

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Various studies have established that feedstock choice, pyrolysis temperature, and pyrolysis type influence final biochar physicochemical characteristics. However, overarching analyses of pre-biochar creation choices and correlations to biochar characteristics are severely lacking. Thus, the objective of this work was to help researchers, biochar-stakeholders, and practitioners make more well-informed choices in terms of how these three major parameters influence the final biochar product. Utilizing approximately 5400 peer-reviewed journal articles and over 50,800 individual data points, herein we elucidate the selections that influence final biochar physical and chemical properties, total nutrient content, and perhaps more importantly tools one can use to predict biochar’s nutrient availability. Based on the large dataset collected, it appears that pyrolysis type (fast or slow) plays a minor role in biochar physico- (inorganic) chemical characteristics; few differences were evident between production styles. Pyrolysis temperature, however, affects biochar’s longevity, with pyrolysis temperatures > 500 °C generally leading to longer-term (i.e., > 1000 years) half-lives. Greater pyrolysis temperatures also led to biochars containing greater overall C and specific surface area (SSA), which could promote soil physico-chemical improvements. However, based on the collected data, it appears that feedstock selection has the largest influence on biochar properties. Specific surface area is greatest in wood-based biochars, which in combination with pyrolysis temperature could likely promote greater changes in soil physical characteristics over other feedstock-based biochars. Crop- and other grass-based biochars appear to have cation exchange capacities greater than other biochars, which in combination with pyrolysis temperature could potentially lead to longer-term changes in soil nutrient retention. The collected data also suggest that one can reasonably predict the availability of various biochar nutrients (e.g., N, P, K, Ca, Mg, Fe, and Cu) based on feedstock choice and total nutrient content. Results can be used to create designer biochars to help solve environmental issues and supply a variety of plant-available nutrients for crop growth.

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Designer Biochars Impact on Corn Grain Yields, Biomass Production, and Fertility Properties of a Highly-Weathered Ultisol

Cited by 21 publications

References 45 publications

Combined application of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer improves rice yield, microbial activity and N-metabolism in a pot experiment

Combined application of biochar and nitrogen fertilizer improves rice yield, microbial activity and N-metabolism in a pot experiment

Corn Stover Removal Responses on Soil Test P and K Levels in Coastal Plain Ultisols

Feedstock choice, pyrolysis temperature and type influence biochar characteristics: a comprehensive meta-data analysis review

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