The Effects of Gliricidia-Derived Biochar on Sequential Maize and Bean Farming

Rio Conservation and Sustainability Science Centre, Department of Geography and the Environment, Pontifícia Universidade Católica, Rio de Janeiro 22453-900, Brazil

International Institute for Sustainability, Estrada Dona Castorina 124, Rio de Janeiro 22460-320, Brazil

Federal Rural University of Rio de Janeiro, Rodovia BR 465, Km 7, Seropédica, Rio de Janeiro 23890-000, Brazil

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Institute of Agricultural Engineering and Informatics, Faculty of Production and Power Engineering, University of Agriculture in Kraków, Balicka 116B, 30-149 Kraków, Poland

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School of Environmental Science, University of East Anglia, Norwich NR4 7TJ, UK

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Programa de Pós Graduação em Ecologia, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro 21941, Brazil

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Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation, Embrapa Agrobiology, Rodovia BR-465, Km 7, Seropédica, Rio de Janeiro 23891-000, Brazil

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Department of Environmental Engineering, Norwegian Geotechnical Institute, P.O. Box 3930, Ullevål Stadion, N-0806 Oslo, Norway

Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.

Sustainability 2018, 10(3), 578; https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030578

Received: 27 November 2017 / Revised: 31 January 2018 / Accepted: 11 February 2018 / Published: 26 February 2018

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Theoretical and Applicability Problems of Agricultural Engineering and Associated Research Areas—Sustainable Agricultural Engineering—Sustainable Biomass to Energy Conversion)

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Abstract

The addition of biochar to soils can improve soil fertility and increase agricultural productivity. We carried out a field experiment in which biochar produced from Gliricidia sepium (Jacq.) Kunth ex Walp. was added to low-fertility Brazilian planosol and tested to increase the yield of maize (Zea mays) and snap beans (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) in sequential, organic cultivation. Biochar was applied at a 15 t/ha rate, combined or not with Azospirillum Brasiliense inoculation and organic fertilizer (Bokashi). The application of biochar resulted in an increase in soil pH and of the content of macronutrients such as phosphorus and potassium. Contrary to evidence from elsewhere, biochar had a limited effect on increasing maize yield. In the case of beans, when combined with fertilizer, biochar increased the production of beans pods and biomass, but the significant increase was observed only for inoculation. Beans are the principal component of Brazilian diet and increasing productivity of beans is of upmost importance for the poorest in Brazil, and in other tropical countries. View Full-Text

Keywords: biochar; maize and beans; smallholder farming; productivity; Brazil

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MDPI and ACS Style

Castro, A.; Da Silva Batista, N.; Latawiec, A.E.; Rodrigues, A.; Strassburg, B.; Silva, D.; Araujo, E.; De Moraes, L.F.D.; Guerra, J.G.; Galvão, G.; Alves-Pinto, H.; Mendes, M.; Dos Santos, J.S.; Rangel, M.C.; Figueredo, M.; Cornelissen, G.; Hale, S. The Effects of Gliricidia-Derived Biochar on Sequential Maize and Bean Farming. Sustainability 2018, 10, 578. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030578

AMA Style

Castro A, Da Silva Batista N, Latawiec AE, Rodrigues A, Strassburg B, Silva D, Araujo E, De Moraes LFD, Guerra JG, Galvão G, Alves-Pinto H, Mendes M, Dos Santos JS, Rangel MC, Figueredo M, Cornelissen G, Hale S. The Effects of Gliricidia-Derived Biochar on Sequential Maize and Bean Farming. Sustainability. 2018; 10(3):578. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030578

Chicago/Turabian Style

Castro, Ana, Nilcileny Da Silva Batista, Agnieszka E. Latawiec, Aline Rodrigues, Bernardo Strassburg, Daniel Silva, Ednaldo Araujo, Luiz F.D. De Moraes, Jose G. Guerra, Gabriel Galvão, Helena Alves-Pinto, Maiara Mendes, Juliana S. Dos Santos, Marcio C. Rangel, Mariela Figueredo, Gerard Cornelissen, and Sarah Hale. 2018. "The Effects of Gliricidia-Derived Biochar on Sequential Maize and Bean Farming" Sustainability 10, no. 3: 578. https://doi.org/10.3390/su10030578

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The Effects of Gliricidia-Derived Biochar on Sequential Maize and Bean Farming

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