Heterogeneous global crop yield response to biochar: a meta-regression analysis
TLDR
In this article, the authors employ meta-analytical, missing data, and semiparametric statistical methods to explain heterogeneity in crop yield responses across different soils, biochars, and agricultural management factors, and then estimate potential changes in yield across different soil environments globally.Abstract:
Biochar may contribute to climate change mitigation at negative cost by sequestering photosynthetically fixed carbon in soil while increasing crop yields. The magnitude of biochar's potential in this regard will depend on crop yield benefits, which have not been well-characterized across different soils and biochars. Using data from 84 studies, we employ meta-analytical, missing data, and semiparametric statistical methods to explain heterogeneity in crop yield responses across different soils, biochars, and agricultural management factors, and then estimate potential changes in yield across different soil environments globally. We find that soil cation exchange capacity and organic carbon were strong predictors of yield response, with low cation exchange and low carbon associated with positive response. We also find that yield response increases over time since initial application, compared to non-biochar controls. High reported soil clay content and low soil pH were weaker predictors of higher yield response. No biochar parameters in our dataset—biochar pH, percentage carbon content, or temperature of pyrolysis—were significant predictors of yield impacts. Projecting our fitted model onto a global soil database, we find the largest potential increases in areas with highly weathered soils, such as those characterizing much of the humid tropics. Richer soils characterizing much of the world's important agricultural areas appear to be less likely to benefit from biochar.read more
Citations
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Journal ArticleDOI
Availability of potassium in biomass combustion ashes and gasification biochars after application to soils with variable pH and clay content
TL;DR: In this article, the expansion of the bioenergy sector and adoption of novel thermal conversion technologies produce increasingly large amounts of biomass ashes and biochars, and before returning such products, they need to return such products before returning them to the market.
Book ChapterDOI
Biochar for Agriculture in Pakistan
Fahd Rasul,Ashfaq Ahmad,Muhammad Arif,Ishaq Ahmad Mian,Kawsar Ali,Muhammad Farooq Qayyum,Qaiser Hussain,Muhammad Aon,Shahzad Latif,Ruben Sakrabani,Muhammad Saghir,Genxing Pan,Simon Shackley +12 more
TL;DR: The increased pH of soils, contaminations of heavy metals, lack of waste treatment technology, unstable soil organic carbon and capacity of soils to exchange ions for the utilization by crop plants especially in dry land agriculture are notorious realities for Pakistan's economy.
Journal ArticleDOI
Block-Recursive Path Models for Rooting-Medium and Plant-Growth Variables Measured in Greenhouse Experiments
Journal ArticleDOI
Short-Term Effects of Organic Amendments on Soil Properties and Maize (Zea maize L.) Growth
TL;DR: In this paper, the effect of three soil amendments, namely, biochars derived from wood (BC), solid digestate (SD), and biochar derived from Solid Digestate (BSD), on soil parameters and their influence in maize-growth performance was investigated.
Journal ArticleDOI
Biochar, compost and arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi: a tripartite approach to combat Sclerotinia sclerotiorum in soybean
TL;DR: It is suggested that compost has a positive effect in terms of soybean growth and diseases suppression, which is more pronounced than that of biochar and AMF.
References
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