scholarly journals The Impact of Biochar Application on Soil Properties and Plant Growth of Pot Grown Lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and Cabbage (Brassica chinensis)

Agronomy ◽  
2013 ◽  
Vol 3 (2) ◽  
pp. 404-418 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Carter ◽  
Simon Shackley ◽  
Saran Sohi ◽  
Tan Suy ◽  
Stephan Haefele
2019 ◽  
Vol 34 (3) ◽  
pp. 283-291 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diana Nebeská ◽  
Valentina Pidlisnyuk ◽  
Tatyana Stefanovska ◽  
Josef Trögl ◽  
Pavlo Shapoval ◽  
...  

Abstract The impact of plant growth regulators (PGRs) “Stimpo” and “Regoplant” on Miscanthus x giganteus (Mxg) biomass parameters was investigated when the plant was grown in military soils with different properties from Dolyna, Ukraine and Hradcany, Czech Republic. The results showed that PGRs positively influenced the biomass parameters when the plant was grown in soil in Dolyna with good agricultural characteristics, the influence of “Regoplant” was higher and the best results were obtained with combined treatment: application to rhizomes before planting and spraying on the biomass during vegetation. Using of PGRs did not improve the biomass parameters when the plant was grown in poor soil in Hradcany. In parallel the peculiarities of the metals uptake process were studied for the following metals: chromium (Cr), manganese (Mn), nickel (Ni), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn), strontium (Sr) and lead (Pb). The uptake behavior of the monitored elements differed based on the soil quality. According to the bioconcentration factor uptake of the abiogenic elements, Cr and Pb, was dominant in the plant roots in both soils, whereas Ni was not detected in any plant tissues. The behavior of biogenic elements (Mn, Cu, Zn) and their analogs (Sr) was different. Those elements were more intensively taken up in shoot tissues in low-nutrient sandy Hradcany soils, while they were mainly taken up in plant roots in fertile Dolyna soils. The unusual behavior of biogenic elements in the low-nutrient soils may be explained by the effect of stress. However, more research is needed focused mainly on soil properties and nutrient availability in order to confirm or disprove this hypothesis and to explore the cause of the stress. The summarized results here show that soil properties influenced Mxg biomass parameters, affected the uptake behavior of metals significantly and tested PGRs cannot be utilized universally in the production of Mxg in the poor military soils.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Baragaño ◽  
Daniel Arenas Lago ◽  
José Luis R. Gallego ◽  
Rubén Forján Castro

<p>The process of industrial change has resulted in the creation of so-called ‘brownfields’ across Europe, particularly in urban areas, in the industrial sections of cities. The need to recover these brownfields can be linked to the new European Commission program "Zero Wastes", that is, to restore or recondition these areas by applying amendments made with by-products or green elements. In this sense, the capacities of magnesite and biochar, inorganic and organic soil amendments respectively, were tested to reduce metal availability and improve the properties of a soil severely contaminated by Cu, Cd, Pb and Zn. To this end, two implementation steps were performed.</p><p>First, 1 kg pots containing the polluted soil were amended with either magnesite or biochar and then determined metal availability and soil properties at days 15 and 75 in a greenhouse experiment. In addition, to evaluate the impact of the two treatments on plant growth, the experimental trials were carried out using Brassica juncea L. and compost addition. Both amendments, but particularly magnesite, markedly decreased metal availability. Soil properties were also improved, as revealed by increases in the cation exchangeable capacity. However, plant growth was inhibited by magnesite amendment. This effect was probably due to an increase in soil pH, cation exchange capacity and a high Mg concentration. In contrast, biochar increased biomass production whereas decreased the content of metals harvested. Then, a field scale experiment was performed in situ by means of treating 1 ton of the soil with the magnesite and also with the biochar. Brassica juncea L. was used for testing the impact on plants, and the experiment was monitored at 3, 30 and 60 days from the beginning of the experiment. Similar results to the greenhouse experiment were obtained.</p><p>In conclusion, the results indicate that magnesite amendment may be suitable for stabilizing contaminated soils (or even spoil heaps) where revegetation is not a priority. In contrast, although biochar has a lower, but still significant, capacity to immobilize metals, its use emerges as a promising tool for restoring soil properties and thus favoring plant growth.</p><p><strong>Acknowledgment</strong></p><p>This work was supported by the research projects NANOBIOWASH CTM2016-75894-P (AEI/FEDER, UE) and NANOCAREM MCI-20-PID2019-106939GB-I00 (AEI/FEDER, UE).</p><p>Diego Baragaño obtained a grant from the “Formación del Profesorado Universitario” program, financed by the “Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte de España”.</p><p>Arenas-Lago D. thanks to his postdoc contract ED481D 2019/007 (Xunta de Galicia and Universidade de Vigo).</p>


Land ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (11) ◽  
pp. 455
Author(s):  
Rebecca M. Swab ◽  
Nicola Lorenz ◽  
Nathan R. Lee ◽  
Steven W. Culman ◽  
Richard P. Dick

After strip mining, soils typically suffer from compaction, low nutrient availability, loss of soil organic carbon, and a compromised soil microbial community. Prairie restorations can improve ecosystem services on former agricultural lands, but prairie restorations on mine lands are relatively under-studied. This study investigated the impact of prairie restoration on mine lands, focusing on the plant community and soil properties. In southeast Ohio, 305 ha within a ~2000 ha area of former mine land was converted to native prairie through herbicide and planting between 1999–2016. Soil and vegetation sampling occurred from 2016–2018. Plant community composition shifted with prairie age, with highest native cover in the oldest prairie areas. Prairie plants were more abundant in older prairies. The oldest prairies had significantly more soil fungal biomass and higher soil microbial biomass. However, many soil properties (e.g., soil nutrients, β-glucosoidase activity, and soil organic carbon), as well as plant species diversity and richness trended higher in prairies, but were not significantly different from baseline cool-season grasslands. Overall, restoration with prairie plant communities slowly shifted soil properties, but mining disturbance was still the most significant driver in controlling soil properties. Prairie restoration on reclaimed mine land was effective in establishing a native plant community, with the associated ecosystem benefits.


Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (3) ◽  
pp. 583
Author(s):  
Reda E. Abdelhameed ◽  
Nagwa I. Abu-Elsaad ◽  
Arafat Abdel Hamed Abdel Latef ◽  
Rabab A. Metwally

Important gaps in knowledge remain regarding the potential of nanoparticles (NPs) for plants, particularly the existence of helpful microorganisms, for instance, arbuscular mycorrhizal (AM) fungi present in the soil. Hence, more profound studies are required to distinguish the impact of NPs on plant growth inoculated with AM fungi and their role in NP uptake to develop smart nanotechnology implementations in crop improvement. Zinc ferrite (ZnFe2O4) NPs are prepared via the citrate technique and defined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) as well as transmission electron microscopy for several physical properties. The analysis of the XRD pattern confirmed the creation of a nanocrystalline structure with a crystallite size equal to 25.4 nm. The effects of ZnFe2O4 NP on AM fungi, growth and pigment content as well as nutrient uptake of pea (Pisum sativum) plants were assessed. ZnFe2O4 NP application caused a slight decrease in root colonization. However, its application showed an augmentation of 74.36% and 91.89% in AM pea plant shoots and roots’ fresh weights, respectively, compared to the control. Moreover, the synthesized ZnFe2O4 NP uptake by plant roots and their contents were enhanced by AM fungi. These findings suggest the safe use of ZnFe2O4 NPs in nano-agricultural applications for plant development with AM fungi.


2021 ◽  
Vol 43 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Agnieszka Ostrowska ◽  
Maciej T. Grzesiak ◽  
Tomasz Hura

AbstractSoil drought is a major problem in plant cultivation. This is particularly true for thermophilic plants, such as maize, which grow in areas often affected by precipitation shortage. The problem may be alleviated using plant growth and development stimulators. Therefore, the aim of the study was to analyze the effects of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA), zearalenone (ZEN), triacontanol (TRIA) and silicon (Si) on water management and photosynthetic activity of maize under soil drought. The experiments covered three developmental stages: three leaves, stem elongation and heading. The impact of these substances applied during drought stress depended on the plant development stage. 5-ALA affected chlorophyll levels, gas exchange and photochemical activity of PSII. Similar effects were observed for ZEN, which additionally induced stem elongation and limited dehydration. Beneficial effects of TRIA were visible at the stage of three leaves and involved leaf hydration and plant growth. A silicon preparation applied at the same developmental stage triggered similar effects and additionally induced changes in chlorophyll levels. All the stimulators significantly affected transpiration intensity at the heading stage.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sara I. Zandalinas ◽  
Soham Sengupta ◽  
Felix B. Fritschi ◽  
Rajeev K. Azad ◽  
Rachel Nechushtai ◽  
...  

Agronomy ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (8) ◽  
pp. 1477
Author(s):  
Antonio Marín-Martínez ◽  
Alberto Sanz-Cobeña ◽  
Mª Angeles Bustamante ◽  
Enrique Agulló ◽  
Concepción Paredes

In semi-arid vineyard agroecosystems, highly vulnerable in the context of climate change, the soil organic matter (OM) content is crucial to the improvement of soil fertility and grape productivity. The impact of OM, from compost and animal manure, on soil properties (e.g., pH, oxidisable organic C, organic N, NH4+-N and NO3−-N), grape yield and direct greenhouse gas (GHG) emission in vineyards was assessed. For this purpose, two wine grape varieties were chosen and managed differently: with a rain-fed non-trellising vineyard of Monastrell, a drip-irrigated trellising vineyard of Monastrell and a drip-irrigated trellising vineyard of Cabernet Sauvignon. The studied fertiliser treatments were without organic amendments (C), sheep/goat manure (SGM) and distillery organic waste compost (DC). The SGM and DC treatments were applied at a rate of 4600 kg ha−1 (fresh weight, FW) and 5000 kg ha−1 FW, respectively. The use of organic amendments improved soil fertility and grape yield, especially in the drip-irrigated trellising vineyards. Increased CO2 emissions were coincident with higher grape yields and manure application (maximum CO2 emissions = 1518 mg C-CO2 m−2 d−1). In contrast, N2O emissions, mainly produced through nitrification, were decreased in the plots showing higher grape production (minimum N2O emissions = −0.090 mg N2O-N m−2 d−1). In all plots, the CH4 fluxes were negative during most of the experiment (−1.073−0.403 mg CH4-C m−2 d−1), indicating that these ecosystems can represent a significant sink for atmospheric CH4. According to our results, the optimal vineyard management, considering soil properties, yield and GHG mitigation together, was the use of compost in a drip-irrigated trellising vineyard with the grape variety Monastrell.


Horticulturae ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (6) ◽  
pp. 140
Author(s):  
Avela Sogoni ◽  
Muhali Jimoh ◽  
Learnmore Kambizi ◽  
Charles Laubscher

Climate change, expanding soil salinization, and the developing shortages of freshwater have negatively affected crop production around the world. Seawater and salinized lands represent potentially cultivable areas for edible salt-tolerant plants. In the present study, the effect of salinity stress on plant growth, mineral composition (macro-and micro-nutrients), and antioxidant activity in dune spinach (Tetragonia decumbens) were evaluated. The treatments consisted of three salt concentrations, 50, 100, and 200 mM, produced by adding NaCl to the nutrient solution. The control treatment had no NaCl but was sustained and irrigated by the nutrient solution. Results revealed a significant increase in total yield, branch production, and ferric reducing antioxidant power in plants irrigated with nutrient solution incorporated with 50 mM NaCl. Conversely, an increased level of salinity (200 mM) caused a decrease in chlorophyll content (SPAD), while the phenolic content, as well as nitrogen, phosphorus, and sodium, increased. The results of this study indicate that there is potential for brackish water cultivation of dune spinach for consumption, especially in provinces experiencing the adverse effect of drought and salinity, where seawater or underground saline water could be diluted and used as irrigation water in the production of this vegetable.


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