Akha biochar enhances soil fertility and productivity of red amaranth plant

ABSTRACT

Biochar is a carbon-rich co-product resulting from pyrolyzing biomass. Its application to soil may increase fertility and productivity of soils. The utilization of biochar as a source of nutrients for red amaranth production was investigated in this study at Naogaon district of Bangladesh. Red amaranth (Amaranthus tricolor L) is a short duration vegetable crop that is cultivated throughout the year in Bangladesh. This study aims to obtain a proper dose of biochar for the growth and yield of red amaranth plants. Six treatments like control (nothing was added), 5 kg/decimal biochar only, BARC (Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council) recommended fertilizer for red amaranth production, BARC recommended fertilizer plus 2.5 kg/decimal biochar, BARC recommended fertilizer plus 5 kg/decimal biochar and BARC recommended fertilizer plus 10 kg/decimal biochar were considered for red amaranth cultivation. Result showed that the BARC recommended dose with 5 kg biochar/decimal produced highest red amaranth yield among the other treatments. It was also observed that the biochar used red amaranth were better appearance than fertilizer used red amaranth. This study concluded that biochar has the potential to improve soil fertility and productivity of red amaranth plant in Bangladesh.

Keywords: Pyrolysis, Akha Chula, carbon sequestration, soil organic matter.