DINGXINDA: Coconut shell derived biochar to enhance water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk) growth
Coconut shell derived biochar to enhance water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk) growth
Farms usually apply excessive nitrogen (N) fertilizers, especially in a vegetable production system, resulting in severe N leaching loss. Although there have been some reports on the impact of biochar on the N leaching in farmlands, most of them focused on field crops in temperate or subtropical religions. Limited information about N leaching in the tropical vegetable system is available regarding the quantitative data and effective countermeasures. A field experiment was conducted to quantify N leaching in a tropical leafy production system (Ipomoea aquatica Forsk) and to evaluate the effects of coconut activated charcoal bulk coconut shell biochar on N loss and crop growth. The results showed that compared to conventional fertilization with the 240 kg N ha-1 application rate (NPK), biomass yield of water spinach increased by 40.1% under the high biochar application rate of 48 t ha-1 HBC), which was significantly higher than that of NPK treatment. Moreover, The HBC treatment decreased N leaching by 34.0%, which can be attributed to enhanced crop uptake which increased by 40.3% as compared to NPK treatment. The NH4+/NO3- ratio in leachates was between 0.01 and 0.05. www.activated-carbon-pellets.comIt was concluded that coconut shell derived biochar improved the biomass yields of water spinach and reduced the leaching N loss, which provides a promising amendment in tropical regions.
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