Features Bioenergy Biomass
Biochar agricultural trial revisited

March 15, 2010, Vancouver – An agricultural trial performed in Quebec using biochar produced by Dynamotive Energy Systems has been revisited in the second year after application. The trial, carried out by Blueleaf of Drummondville, Quebec, involved the application of an estimated 3,500 pounds/acre (3.9 tonnes/hectare) of biochar to one 1,000 square-metre treatment plot. The field also received lime, manure, and fertilizer. The field was planted with soybean in the first year, and with a forage mixture in the second year.

Measurements of the two plots indicated a higher soybean yield in the treated area than in the untreated area, but this was because of greater plant density, rather than greater yield per plant. Root nodulation and seed yield per soybean plant were lower in the treated area than in the untreated area. Forage biomass in the treated area ranged from 17 to 99% greater than in the untreated area, but the calculated feed quality, e.g., protein content, was somewhat lower.

Read the Blueleaf report for full details, including soil physical and chemical parameters and soil community biodiversity. 

November 30, 1999  By Canadian BioMass