Abstract
The amendment of soil with biochar has been demonstrated to have an effect not only on the soil physicochemical properties, but also on soil microbial community composition and activity. Previous reports have demonstrated significant impacts on soil microbial community structure. These impacts are modulated not only by the biochar composition, but also on the soil’s physicochemical characteristics. This indicates that soil characteristics must be considered prior to biochar amendment. A significant portion of the soils of the southeastern coastal plain are severely degraded and, therefore, candidates for biochar amendment to strengthen soil fertility. In this study we focused on two common soil series in the southeastern coastal plain, utilizing feedstocks endemic to the area. We chose feedstocks in four ratios (100% pine chip; 80:20 mixture of pine chip to poultry litter; 50:50 mixture of pine chip to poultry litter; 100% poultry litter) prior to pyrolysis and soil amendment as a biochar product. Soil was analyzed for bioavailable nutrients via Mehlich-1 extractions, as well as microbial community composition using phospholipid fatty acid analysis (PLFA). Our results demonstrated significant shifts in microbial community composition in response to biochar amendment, the effects of which were greatest with 100% poultry litter biochar. Strong relationships between PLFAs and several Mehlich-1 extractable nutrients (Al, Cu, Fe, and P) were observed.
Highlights
When used as a soil amendment, biochar has the potential to improve the health and fertility of degraded soils
All Norfolk soil samples amended with poultry litter biochar (PC):Poultry litter (PL) biochar mixtures, with the exception of the 100% pine chip biochar (PC:PL 100:0), caused significant increases (p < 0.05) in soil pH over the slightly acidic, non-amended, control soil
These studies have often focused on the role that biochar amendment plays on the improvement of physical and chemical characteristics of the soil series to which they are applied
Summary
When used as a soil amendment, biochar has the potential to improve the health and fertility of degraded soils. Despite its wide ranging success as a soil amendment, biochar is not without its detractions, with reports demonstrating negative impacts to soil pH and cation exchange capacity [3], reduced soil aggregation [4], decreases in beneficial soil microorganisms [5], and lower crop yields [6]. The disparity between these reports indicates that there may not be a single biochar source suitable for the amendment of all soils; in other words, not all manufactured biochars may be suitable for all soil types. While this has resulted in the ability to adjust amendments so that they provide the proper amount of benefit to soil characteristics, what is still largely unknown is how these designer biochars affect overall soil microbial community composition
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