Biochar potential in intensive cultivation of Capsicum annuum L. (sweet pepper): crop yield and plant protection.

BACKGROUND: The influence of various biochars on crop yield and disease resistance of Capsicum annuum L. (sweet pepper) under modern, high input, intensive net house cultivation was tested over the course of 2011-2014 in the Arava desert region of Israel. A pot experiment with Lactuca sativa L. (lettuce) grown in the absence of fertilizer employed the 3-year-old field trial soils to determine if biochar treatments contributed to soil intrinsic fertility. RESULTS: Biochar amendments resulted in a significant increase in the number and weight of pepper fruits over 3 years. Concomitant with the increased yield, biochar significantly decreased the severity of powdery mildew (Leveillula taurica) disease and broad mite (Polyphagotarsonemus latus) pest infestation. Biochar additions resulted in increased soil organic matter but did not influence the pH, electrical conductivity or soil or plant mineral nutrients. Intrinsic fertility experiments with lettuce showed that two of the four biochar-treated field soils had significant positive impacts on lettuce fresh weight and total chlorophyll, carotenoid and anthocyanin contents. CONCLUSION: Biochar-based soil management can enhance the functioning of intensive, commercial, net house production of peppers under the tested conditions, resulting in increased crop yield and plant resistance to disease over several years. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry.

Distinctive in-planta acclimation responses to basal growth and acute heat stress were induced in Arabidopsis by cattle manure biochar.

In-planta mechanisms of biochar (BC)-mediated improved growth were evaluated by examining oxidative stress, metabolic, and hormonal changes of Arabidopsis wild-type plants under basal or acute heat stress (-HS/ + HS) conditions with or without BC (+ BC/-BC). The oxidative stress was evaluated by using Arabidopsis expressing redox-sensitive green fluorescent protein in the plastids (pla-roGFP2). Fresh biomass and inflorescence height were greater in + BC(‒HS) plants than in the -BC(‒HS) plants, despite similar leaf nutrient levels, photosystem II (PSII) maximal efficiencies and similar oxidative poise. Endogenous levels of jasmonic and abscisic acids were higher in the + BC(‒HS) treatment, suggesting their role in growth improvement. HS in ‒BC plants caused reductions in inflorescence height and PSII maximum quantum yield, as well as significant oxidative stress symptoms manifested by increased lipid peroxidation, greater chloroplast redox poise (oxidized form of roGFP), increased expression of DNAJ heat shock proteins and Zn-finger genes, and reduced expression of glutathione-S-transferase gene in addition to higher abscisic acid and salicylic acid levels. Oxidative stress symptoms were significantly reduced by BC. Results suggest that growth improvements by BC occurring under basal and HS conditions are induced by acclimation mechanisms to 'microstresses' associated with basal growth and to oxidative stress of HS, respectively.

Mechanistic evaluation of biochar potential for plant growth promotion and alleviation of chromium-induced phytotoxicity in Ficus elastica.

The potential of biochar to enhance phytorestoration of hexavalent chromium [Cr(VI)]-contaminated soils was investigated. Rooted cuttings of Ficus elastica Roxb. Ex Hornem were transplanted to soil treated with 0 or 25 mg kg-1 Cr(VI), ‒Cr and +Cr designations respectively, and amended with cattle manure-derived biochar at 0, 10 and 50 g kg-1. Plants were grown for 180 d in a temperature-controlled greenhouse. In the ‒Cr treatment, biochar addition enhanced plant growth without affecting plant water status, leaf nutrient levels, photochemical efficiency, or hormone levels. In the absence of biochar, Ficus growth in the +Cr treatment was stunted, exhibiting decreased leaf and root relative water content and photochemical efficiency. Adding biochar to +Cr soil resulted in decreased Cr uptake into plant tissues and alleviated the toxic effects of soil Cr(VI) on plant growth and physiology, including decreased leaf lipid peroxidation. High-resolution electron microscopy and spectroscopy elucidated the biochar role in decreasing Cr mobility, bioavailability, and phytotoxicity. Spectroscopic evidence is suggestive that biochar mediated the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III), which was subsequently incorporated into organomineral agglomerates formed at biochar surfaces. The dual function of biochar in improving F. elastica performance and detoxifying Cr(VI) demonstrates that biochar holds much potential for enhancing phytorestoration of Cr(VI)-contaminated soils.

Biochar alleviates phytotoxicity in Ficus elastica grown in Zn-contaminated soil.

Zinc (Zn) immobilization by two distinct biochars in soil, together with concomitant alleviation of phytotoxic responses in Ficus elastica Roxb. ex Hornem., were examined. Rooted cuttings of F. elastica were grown in 880mgkg-1 Zn-spiked sandy soil amended with grain husk (GH) or cattle manure (CM) biochar at 0, 10, 30 and 50gkg-1 soil for a period of 6months. Addition of both GH and CM biochars had significant positive impacts on physiological parameters such as plant growth, leaf relative water content, photosynthetic pigments and leaf gas exchange characteristics. The responses to addition of CM biochar were significantly better than to GH biochar. Lipid peroxidation declined in leaves of plants grown in Zn-contaminated, biochar-amended soil. This was confirmed by luminescence and Fourier transform infrared analysis of the leaf material. Biochar significantly reduced the availability of soil Zn, as evidenced by lower concentrations of Zn in leaves and leachates of biochar treated plants relative to control plants. These findings show that biochar can effectively immobilize soil Zn, and as a result, alleviate Zn phytotoxicity by reducing its uptake and accumulation in the plant. Adding biochar to soils contaminated with metals thus holds promise as a means of restoring blighted lands.

Biochar aging in contaminated soil promotes Zn immobilization due to changes in biochar surface structural and chemical properties.

Adding biochar to Zn-contaminated soil can immobilize excess Zn and promote plant biomass growth. This was seen previously over the course of a 180-day planted pot trial involving two types of biochar (cattle manure, CM, and grain husk, GH) in a Zn-contaminated soil. Both biochars alleviated Zn-induced phytotoxicity to Ficus by immobilizing Zn and reducing its uptake by the plant, but to different extents. The aim of the current study was to delve into the in-soil mechanisms involved in biochar-mediated Zn immobilization. Biochar particles were excavated from the pot soils. Fresh and aged biochar particles were examined by high-resolution scanning electron microscope (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS), field-emission electron probe micro-analyzer (EPMA), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The physical and chemical properties of the biochars had changed over the 180 days. SEM-EDS and EPMA indicated that organo-mineral micro-agglomerates had formed on biochar surfaces and in pores. Some of the Zn immobilized by the biochars was bound in the organo-mineral complexes of these agglomerates. XPS and FTIR showed that the complexes had a high concentration of oxygenated functional groups which facilitated Zn binding and encapsulation. The micro-agglomerates were similar in structure and composition to those observed on biochars having resided for much longer times in soils, or having been subjected to accelerated aging. Overall, Zn immobilization by the CM biochar was greater than by the GH biochar, due to its higher alkalinity, higher concentration of available negatively charged groups, and greater accretion of organo-mineral layers. These findings are suggestive that biochar-assisted phytorestoration of heavy metal-contaminated soils can be optimized through selection of biochar having such traits. It is hypothesized that metals may be continually taken up in such micro-agglomerates, since they continue to form over the lifetime of the biochar in the soil.

Non-chemical Control of Root Parasitic Weeds with Biochar.

This study tested whether soil-applied biochar can impact the seed germination and attachment of root parasitic weeds. Three hypotheses were evaluated: (i) biochar adsorbs host-exuded signaling molecules; (ii) biochar activates plants' innate system-wide defenses against invasion by the parasite; and (iii) biochar has a systemic influence on the amount of seed germination stimulant produced or released by the host plant. Three types of experiments were performed: (I) pot trials with tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) infested with Phelipanche aegyptiaca PERS. (Egyptian broomrape) and three different types of biochar at concentrations ranging from 0 to 1.5% weight, wherein tomato plant biomass, P. aegyptiaca biomass, and number of P. aegyptiaca-tomato root attachments were quantified; (II) split-root biochar/no-biochar experiments under hydroponic growing conditions performed in polyethylene bags with tomato plant rootings, wherein P. aegyptiaca seed germination percentage and radicle attachment numbers were quantified; and (III) germination trials, wherein the effect of biochar adsorption of GR-24 (artificial germination stimulant) on P. aegyptiaca seed germination was quantified. Addition of biochar to the pot soil (Experiment I) resulted in lower levels of P. aegyptiaca infection in the tomato plants, mainly through a decrease in the number of P. aegyptiaca attachments. This led to improved tomato plant growth. In Experiment II, P. aegyptiaca seed germination percentage decreased in the biochar-treated root zone as compared with the no-biochar control root zone; P. aegyptiaca radicle attachment numbers decreased accordingly. This experiment showed that biochar did not induce a systemic change in the activity of the stimulant molecules exuded by the tomato roots, toxicity to the radicles, or a change in the ability of the radicles to penetrate the tomato roots. The major cause for the decrease in germination percentage was physical adsorption of the stimulant molecule by the biochar (Experiment III). Adding biochar to soil to reduce infections by root parasitic weeds is an innovative means of control with the potential to become an important strategy both for non-chemical treatment of this family of pests, and for enhancing the economic feasibility of the pyrolysis/biochar platform. This platform is often viewed as one of a handful of credible strategies for helping to mitigate climate change.