Application of biochar in agriculture: A sustainable approach for enhanced plant growth, productivity and soil health

Abstract

Soil quality degradation is one of the major outcomes of environmental pollution that can be characterized by deficient nutrients and concurrent presence of toxic substances in the agroecosystems. To enhance crop productivity, farmers use uncontrolled synthetic fertilizers that further deteriorate the soil health. Several organic components have been developed to reduce the overload of chemical fertilizers. Application of biochar to the soil is one of the potential methods that not only enhance the crop productivity but at the same time improve soil quality parameters. The application of biochar has also been proved to reduce the greenhouse gaseous emission from the agroecosystems. In this chapter, the efforts have been made to explore the production, features, mode of application, and effects of biochar on crop productivity and soil health. Further, the impact of biochar in the mitigation of abiotic stresses has also been discussed.