Enriched rice husk biochar superior to commercial biochar in ameliorating ammonia loss from urea fertilizer and improving plant uptake.

Adding value to agricultural leftovers and turning them into biochar is a viable way to replenish soil nutrients and boost crop productivity. To further validate the efficacy of enriched rice husk biochar, an incubation study and a pot experiment were conducted: (1) to describe the effect of enriched rice husk biochar addition on soil total N, soil exchangeable NH and available NO and (2) to describe the effect of enriched rice husk biochar on improving N, P, K, Ca, and Mg uptake, use efficiency, and dry matter production of rice plants. The amount of NH loss that was considerably reduced by rice husk biochar at 5 and 10 t ha was 34 % lower than the control.

Improving phosphorus availability in an acid soil using organic amendments produced from agroindustrial wastes.

In acid soils, soluble inorganic phosphorus is fixed by aluminium and iron. To overcome this problem, acid soils are limed to fix aluminium and iron but this practice is not economical. The practice is also not environmentally friendly.

Qualitative assessment of soil carbon in a rehabilitated forest using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.

Logging and poor shifting cultivation negatively affect initial soil carbon (C) storage, especially at the initial stage of deforestation, as these practices lead to global warming. As a result, an afforestation program is needed to mitigate this problem. This study assessed initial soil C buildup of rehabilitated forests using Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy.