Effects of biochar application on crop water use efficiency depend on experimental conditions: A meta-analysis

Gao, Yang; Shao, Guangcheng; Jia, Lianshun; Zhang, Kun; Wu, Shiqing; Wang, Zhiyu

doi:10.1016/j.fcr.2020.107763

Cited by 37 publications

(20 citation statements)

References 79 publications

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…More recently, the meta‐analysis by Gao et al (2020), using 43 studies with 284 pairwise comparisons, found a significant increase in plant WUE of 19% on average and leaf‐WUE of 20%. Plant‐WUE is defined as the amount of biomass accumulated per total amount of water used (Gao et al, 2020; Pazzagli et al, 2016), while leaf‐WUE is defined as water loss per net CO 2 ‐uptake at the leaf (or canopy) level (Gao et al, 2020; Paneque et al, 2016). However, the authors found very high variability in WUE responses, ranging from −36 to +313% which was due to several different factors such as pH, C and K content of the biochar, and application rate (<20 t ha −1 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biochar in agriculture – A systematic review of 26 global meta‐analyses

Schmidt¹,

et al. 2021

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Biochar is obtained by pyrolyzing biomass and is, by definition, applied in a way that avoids its rapid oxidation to CO2. Its use in agriculture includes animal feeding, manure treatment (e.g. as additive for bedding, composting, storage or anaerobic digestion), fertilizer component or direct soil application. Because the feedstock carbon is photosynthetically fixed CO2 from the atmosphere, producing and applying biochar is essentially a carbon dioxide removal (CDR) technology, which has a high‐technology readiness level. However, for swift implementation of pyrogenic carbon capture and storage (PyCCS), biochar use in agriculture needs to deliver co‐benefits, for example, by improving crop yields and ecosystem services and/or by improving climate change resilience by ameliorating key soil properties. Agronomic biochar research is a rapidly evolving field of research moving from less than 100 publications in 2010 to more than 15,000 by the end of 2020. Here, we summarize 26 rigorously selected meta‐analyses published since 2016 that investigated a multitude of soil properties and agronomic performance parameters impacted by biochar application, for example, effects on yield, root biomass, water use efficiency, microbial activity, soil organic carbon and greenhouse gas emissions. All 26 meta‐analyses show compelling evidence of the overall beneficial effect of biochar for all investigated agronomic parameters. One of the remaining challenges is the standardization of basic biochar analysis, still lacking in many studies. Incomplete biochar characterization increases uncertainty because adverse effects of individual studies included in the meta‐analyses might be related to low‐quality biochars, which would not qualify for certification and subsequent use (e.g. high content of contaminants, high salinity, incomplete pyrolysis, etc.). In summary, our systematic review suggests that biochar use in agriculture has the potential to combine CDR with significant agronomic and/or environmental co‐benefits.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biochar in agriculture – A systematic review of 26 global meta‐analyses

Schmidt¹,

et al. 2021

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Biochar could be one of such low‐cost technologies used to enhance the soil capacity to store water within the rootzone and reduce irrigation frequency and intensity (Gao et al., 2020). Biochar is a porous, C‐rich product with high surface area generated through the pyrolysis (300–1,200 °C) of organic material in a low oxygen environment and added to the soil to alleviate specific constraints to plant growth (Gao et al., 2020; Katterer et al., 2019; Lehman & Joseph, 2015; Liu et al., 2013). Evidence suggests that biochar application to coarse‐textured soils could be a sustainable agricultural practice to increase VSWC (Downie et al., 2009), sequester C in the soil (Cayuela et al., 2010), and recycle nutrients that could be available for plant uptake (Lal, 2004).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Evidence suggests that biochar application to coarse-textured soils could be a sustainable agricultural practice to increase VSWC (Downie et al, 2009), sequester C in the soil (Cayuela et al, 2010), and recycle nutrients that could be available for plant uptake (Lal, 2004). Previous studies have reported that significant agronomic effects occur at very high biochar application rates (∼100 Mg ha -1 ) (Gao et al, 2020;Jeffery et al, 2011Jeffery et al, , 2015; however, these rates could be prohibitively expensive for producers, impractical for annual row cropping systems, and potentially produce detrimental effects on root growth and function by inhibiting cell division and metabolism (Solaiman et al, 2012). Therefore, there is a need to evaluate the impact of biochar application rates on VSWC under field conditions.…”

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confidence: 99%

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Biochar affects soil water content but not soybean yield in a sandy southeastern U.S. soil

Reyes‐Cabrera

Erickson

León

2021

Agrosystems Geosci & Env

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Drought is the greatest abiotic cause of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] yield loss in rainfed systems in the United States. Preplant incorporation of powdery biochar to soil cultivated with soybean in these water-stressed regions presents the potential to increase volumetric soil water content (VSWC) between rainfall events and ameliorate the impact of intermittent water stress. However, VSWC and the aboveand belowground response of soybean to biochar amendment are not well understood. This 2-yr field study (2014)(2015) evaluated the effectiveness of incorporating powdery (325 μm) biochar to 0.2-m soil depth to increase soil water storage in a coarse-textured soil in the southeastern United States. Soybean yield, aboveground biomass accumulation, root morphology, and VSWC in the soil profile to 1-m depth were assessed under three biochar rates (0, 2.5, and 10 Mg ha -1 ) and two water treatments (rainfed and irrigated). In 2014, application of 10 Mg biochar ha -1 increased the cumulative soil water storage in the top 1-m soil depth. Biochar application did not affect soybean yield or root morphology. Biochar only elicited changes in fresh weight of pods during reproductive stages, which indicates biochar's limited benefit to the water status of this shoot component. Irrigation increased yield by 28% compared with the rainfed treatment. Our study provides evidence that field application of biochar to soybean may be a sustainable practice to sequester recalcitrant C in the soil when biochar is available to producers, but its benefits on protecting soybean yield from water stress might depend on other factors such as soil texture, rainfall amount, and frequency. INTRODUCTIONSoybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] is the world's top oilseed crop cultivated either for food and fuel purposes (Ritchie &

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Nutrient‐charged biochars increased nutrient‐use efficiency in a cotton–maize rotation in Burkina Faso

Saba

Cornélis

Sawadogo³

et al. 2023

Agronomy Journal

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Soil nutrient depletion, low crop nutrient‐use efficiency, and limited access to fertilizers are serious issues leading to poor yield in agroecosystems of Burkina Faso. Blending biochars with organic or inorganic nutrients could slow down nutrient release, which can enhance fertilizer‐use efficiency. This study investigates whether charging biochar with nutrients and Acacia gum (Acacia senegal L.) coating can improve nutrient‐use efficiency in a cotton (Gossypium hirsutum L.)–maize (Zea mays L.) rotation system using low application rates (<5 t ha−1). The experiment was conducted in western Burkina Faso during three cropping seasons (2018–2020) with five treatments: T0, control; T1, conventional practice with compost and nitrogen (N), phosphorus (P), and potassium (K) application; T2, microdose (planting hole application) of NPK; T3. nutrient‐charged biochar activated with dissolved NPK; T4, nutrient‐charged biochar activated with dissolved NPK and coated with Acacia gum. Biochar‐based fertilizers significantly increased soil organic C content, as well as bioavailable P and calcium (Ca), without significantly improving crop yields, compared to conventional practice and microdose of NPK. When nutrient‐charged biochar was coated with Acacia gum, N‐use efficiency (NUE; N recovered in grain/N fertilized) was improved compared to uncoated nutrient‐charged biochar, although the difference was not significant. Despite no significant effects on crop yields during three cropping seasons, the use of coated biochar‐based fertilizer may be a technically effective solution to improve NUE in the long term in agroecosystems characterized by nutrient‐impoverished soils under a constraining South‐Sudanese climate.

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Effects of biochar application on crop water use efficiency depend on experimental conditions: A meta-analysis

Cited by 37 publications

References 79 publications

Biochar in agriculture – A systematic review of 26 global meta‐analyses

Biochar in agriculture – A systematic review of 26 global meta‐analyses

Biochar affects soil water content but not soybean yield in a sandy southeastern U.S. soil

Nutrient‐charged biochars increased nutrient‐use efficiency in a cotton–maize rotation in Burkina Faso

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