Work

Effect of Pistachio Shell Biochar and Organic Cow Manure Application on Plant Growth, Water Retention Capacity and Nutrient Stress Mitigation

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Sustainable crop production supports food security by mitigating water and nutrient stress from manures by excessively drained water. Cow manure is a good nutrient resource to enhance soil fertility and plant growth but requires a suitable amender to reduce the nutrients loss by leaching. Worldwide more than 20,400 metric tonnes of pistachios were consumed where roughly 30% of the weight of the nut is the shell which could be a good feedstock for biochar production. Therefore, this study was conducted to produce biochar from pistachio shell by pyrolysis process at three different temperatures 350 to 550 °C and based on various properties characterization, the biochar at 450 °C was amended with 0% (control), 2%, 4% and 8% to the cow manure for eggplant growth ( Solanum melongena ). Out of all fractions of biochar application, 2% biochar has virtuous performance to increase 5.63 ± 1.45 cm of plant height, 1.33 ± 4.79 cm leaf length and 1.90 ± 4.43 cm leaf width over the control. The leaf chlorophyl content and plant biomass were also significantly ( p = 0.02) increased compared to the control. The lower fraction of biochar application showed almost similar water retention capacity with control ( p > 0.11) due to the better plant growth. Based on the findings of this study, it is proposed that lower fraction of biochar application with manure is a constructive solution to improve soil quality, reduce nutrient loss and eggplant growth. Under the circular economy and frameworks of sustainability, pistachio shell biochar production has a high legislative attention on valorizing nutshell wastes. Graphical Abstract

Source: Waste and Biomass Valorization

DOI: 10.1007/s12649-024-02681-3

Authors: Snigdhendubala Pradhan, Prakash Parthasarathy, Hamish R. Mackey, Tareq Al-Ansari, Gordon McKay

Institutions: Hamad bin Khalifa University, University of Canterbury

Language: English

Topic: Agricultural Science and Fertilization

Subfield: Soil Science

Field: Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Domain: Life Sciences

SDGs: Zero hunger, Responsible consumption and production, Life on land, Climate action

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,590