Abstract
Response to fertilisation with biochar is greatest in field crops on acidic tropical soils, but limited information is available for vegetable crops. As a case-study using vegetable production in Timor-Leste, we assessed if biochar alleviates nutritional constraints to vegetables in low-nutrient soils. Field trials on vegetable crops were conducted with fertiliser combinations of rice husk biochar, phosphate and local fertiliser at three sites. A pot soil incubation trial of biochar was undertaken with soil from the acid site, where rice husk biochar had a larger effect on productivity than the other fertilisers in chili pepper, tomato and soybean with an average yield increase with biochar of 230% over control. Combining phosphate with biochar augmented the yield over biochar alone in chili pepper, tomato and soybean. At neutral and alkaline sites, fertilisation with biochar lifted mean yield over the control. Soil constraints alleviated by fertiliser were primarily from P and Zn deficiencies. Marked increases in vegetable yields, among the highest globally, were achieved with fertilisation with biochar individually and in combination with phosphate in low nutrient soil in Timor-Leste. Clearly, rice husk biochar is a promising avenue to fertilise the soil with P and Zn and increase crop productivity in Timor-Leste.
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Claims 6
Claim · model-written summary
Rice husk biochar had a larger effect on productivity than the other fertilisers in chili pepper, tomato and soybean on the acid site.
- Taxon
- chili pepper, tomato and soybean
Glycine max
Solanum lycopersicum
Capsicume1 - Treatment
- rice husk biochare1
- Outcome
- productivitye1
- Direction
- larger effecte1
- Comparator
- the other fertiliserse1
Not reportedValue
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“rice husk biochar had a larger effect on productivity than the other fertilisers in chili pepper, tomato and soybean”
Claim · model-written summary
Biochar gave an average yield increase of 230% over control across the vegetable crops tested.
- Taxon
- chili pepper, tomato and soybeanGlycine maxSolanum lycopersicumCapsicume1
- Treatment
- biochare2
- Outcome
- yielde2
- Direction
- increasee2
- Value
- 230%e2
- Comparator
- controle2
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e1“rice husk biochar had a larger effect on productivity than the other fertilisers in chili pepper, tomato and soybean”
e2“an average yield increase with biochar of 230% over control”
Claim · model-written summary
Combining phosphate with biochar augmented yield over biochar alone in chili pepper, tomato and soybean.
- Taxon
- chili pepper, tomato and soybeanGlycine maxSolanum lycopersicumCapsicume3
- Treatment
- Combining phosphate with biochare3
- Outcome
- yielde3
- Direction
- augmentede3
- Comparator
- biochar alonee3
Not reportedValue
Organisms pictured · Representative pictures of the matched species, not figures from the paper.
Verbatim
e3“Combining phosphate with biochar augmented the yield over biochar alone in chili pepper, tomato and soybean”
Claim · model-written summary
At neutral and alkaline sites, fertilisation with biochar lifted mean yield over the control.
- Taxon
- vegetable cropse0
- Treatment
- fertilisation with biochare4
- Outcome
- mean yielde4
- Direction
- liftede4
- Comparator
- the controle4
- Setting
- At neutral and alkaline sitese4
Not reportedValue
Verbatim
e4“At neutral and alkaline sites, fertilisation with biochar lifted mean yield over the control”
e0“limited information is available for vegetable crops”
Claim · model-written summary
Soil constraints alleviated by fertiliser were primarily P and Zn deficiencies.
Verbatim
e5“Soil constraints alleviated by fertiliser were primarily from P and Zn deficiencies”
e0“limited information is available for vegetable crops”
Claim · model-written summary
The authors consider rice husk biochar a promising avenue to fertilise soil with P and Zn and raise crop productivity.
Verbatim
e6“rice husk biochar is a promising avenue to fertilise the soil with P and Zn and increase crop productivity in Timor-Leste”
e0“limited information is available for vegetable crops”
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See all 7 papers →8 of 9 groups shown: named compounds and organisms first, then groups whose results differ (checked claim by claim), then those with positive and negative results, then the smaller groups.
Claims are grouped by organism, treatment and what was measured or targeted. A paper counts as positive when any of its claims in the group is positive.