LOCALLY PRODUCED CO-COMPOSTED BIOCHAR ENHANCES NUTRIENT AVAILABILITY AND MAIZE GROWTH IN LOW-FERTILITY SOILS: A POT STUDY

Abstract

Recently, the utilization of biochar has gained significant significance as a means of adopting sustainable agriculture. Biochar has the remarkable ability to increase agricultural output by improving the availability of nutrients to plants. However, the very high cost renders it unfeasible for farmers to obtain independently. Hence, to guarantee the economic viability of its implementation, the utilization of biochar in conjunction with fertilizers and organic manures has been examined. This study investigates the impact of co-composted biochar (COMBI) on the availability of phosphorus (P) in soil with low fertility. The aim of our study was to assess the uptake of P by maize plants in the soil after the application of organic-coated biochar. The experiment had six treatments: a) Control, b) Compost, c) Ash, d) Biochar, e) Poultry litter, and f) COMBI and applied at the rate of 10% (w/w). The experiment was conducted using a completely randomized design (CRD) with three replications. Each pot was filled with a mixture of 4.0 kg of soils and experiment duration was 60 days, during which the plants and roots were gathered, dried, and subjected to analysis. The soil samples were analyzed in correlation with the treatments. The findings demonstrated that COMBI surpasses alternative treatments, leading to enhanced plant growth, elevated overall biomass mass, and enhanced absorption of nutrients such as nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, and magnesium. In addition, COMBI also results in increased organic matter percentage, cation exchange capacity (CEC), and concentrations of calcium, magnesium, and potassium. Thus, the findings validated that COMBI is a remarkably potent soil additive, substantially augmenting crop yield and fostering plant proliferation and maturation.