Long-term Biochar Agronomic Field Trial

Status: Ongoing, since 2009

Contact person: Prof Davey Jones

Funding sources: European Union SEREN programme, European Union KESS programme

Background: Biochar is regarded by many as one of the answers to increasing long-term storage of soil carbon, helping to reduce the warming impacts of carbon in the atmosphere. However, there is much work to do to determine the impacts of adding biochar on soil processes over a long-term period. Mixed hardwood biochar was added in a randomised block design field trial at three rates in 2009 (0, 25 or 50 t ha-1), and the impacts on the growth of various crops and soil function investigated. There has also been a direct comparison of the biochar versus wood ash as a soil amendment.

Aims:

  • To evaluate the impact of biochar on crop production and soil quality at the field scale over multiple cropping cycles
  • To assess the impact of biochar and wood ash on ecosystem service delivery
  • To quantify the impact of repeated biochar and wood ash doses on crop and soil quality
  • To evaluate farmer opinion on the use of biochar and wood ash in cropping and grassland systems
  • To compare the benefits of biochar and wood ash using a life cycle approach
  • To assess the impact of biochar on metal, pesticide and PAH movement and attenuation in soil
  • Collaborators: Prof Daniel Murphy and Dr Daniel Dempster (University of Western Australia), Dr Richard Quilliam (University of Stirling), Dr Johannes Rousk (University of Lund, Sweden)

Outputs:

Photos

Figure 1. The application of biochar to the field plots before being power harrowed into the soil

Figure 2. The biochar field trial site planted with fodder maize

Figure 3. Biochar pieces lying on the surface after incorporation in Year 1 of the trial with maize