Abstract
The study aimed to evaluate the effect of Daniella wood Biochar on the growth and biomass of maize harvested 8 weeks after sowing in a pot experiment. The research was carried out in order to evaluate the effect of Daniella wood biochar on the growth and biomass of maize and the effects of Daniella wood biochar on the physiochemical properties of the soil. Pots were filled with 5 kg of normal soil (oxisol) and biochar was thoroughly mixed with the soil and six treatments were applied (4, 8, 12. 16 and 20 tha-1 of biochar and control). The treatments were replicated three times. The experiments were laid out in a complete randomized design (CRD). Data on growth parameters such as plant height, number of leaves, leaf area, stem diameter, fresh leaf weight, dry leaf weight, fresh shoot weight, dry shoot weight, fresh biomass weight and dry biomass weight were collected. Soil samples incorporated with daniella wood biochar were collected before planting and after harvest for determination of physiochemical properties of the samples. Application of 12 tha-1 produced significantly (P<0.01) higher plant height (142.2 cm) wider Leaf area (538.0 cm2 ), higher fresh biomass weight (221.4 gpot-1 ), dry biomass weight (79.9 gpot-1 ), fresh shoot weight (140.0 g), dry shoot weight (53.7 gpot-1 ), fresh leaf weight (81.4 gpot-1) and dry leaf weight (32.5 gpot-1) while 20 tha-1produced highly significant number of leaves (17) and wider stem diameter (1.63 cm). In conclusion, it was established that the application of 12tha- Daniella wood biochar generally increases maize growth parameters (plant height, leaf area, fresh leaf weight, dry leaf weight, fresh shoot weight, dry shoot weight and plant biomass weight), while 20 tha-1 increases the leaf production and stem diameter of the crop. Key words: Biochar, maize, growth, biomass and oxisols.  
Highlights
Maize (Zea mays L.) belongs to the family poaceae, sub family panicoideae, and tribe, Andropogoneae
Maize was the most widely adapted and the most important cereal in the world in 2009 with a production of 822.7 million metric tonnes followed by rice and wheat with 782.3 and 680.2 million metric tonnes respectively (FAO, 2012)
Biochar is a stable form of charcoal produced from heating natural organic materials in a temperature below 1000°C and low oxygen; the process is known as pyrolysis (Lehmann et al, 2006b)
Summary
Maize (Zea mays L.) belongs to the family poaceae, sub family panicoideae, and tribe, Andropogoneae It is a coarse robust cereal crop, attaining a height of about 1-6 m depending on the variety (Sharma, 2010). Like every other crop, maize production requires some agronomic practices most especially soil nutrient amendments such as biochar to improve its productivity and biomass quality. The addition of biochar as an amendment material to agricultural soil is receiving much attention due to the apparent benefits of biochar to soil quality and enhanced crop yields, as well as the potential to gain credits by active carbon sequestration. The addition of Biochar as amendment materials to degraded soils is receiving a global attention due to the apparent benefits of biochar to soil quality and enhancement of crop yields, as well as the potential of biohar to actively sequestered carbon (Major, 2011). Applying biochar to forest soils along with natural or synthetic fertilizers has been found to increase the bioavailability and plant uptake of phosphorus, alkaline metals and some trace metals (Glaser et al, 2002)
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