Changes in soil conditions after application of biochar

Abstract

Biochar is a carbonized, stable product obtained by pyrolysis. Due to its structure, chemical composition and characteristics biochar can change soil properties over a long period. To study the effect of woody biochar on loamy sand Spodosol, a small-scale field experiment was conducted. Following treatments were used in the experiment: soil-control, soil with biochar at a rate of 5 t ha-1, soil with nitrogen fertilizer at a rate of 90 kgN ha-1 and soil with combined application of biochar and N fertilizer. Application of biochar increased water-holding capacity of the soil in the range of plant-available water by 7%, in average, increased soil moisture 1.13-1.19 times, reduced the soil bulk density by 5% and led to a short-term increase in soil pH.