Heterogeneous global crop yield response to biochar: a meta-regression analysis
Open Access
- 1 December 2013
- journal article
- letter
- Published by IOP Publishing in Environmental Research Letters
- Vol. 8 (4), 044049
- https://doi.org/10.1088/1748-9326/8/4/044049
Abstract
Biochar may contribute to climate change mitigation at negative cost by sequestering photosynthetically fixed carbon in soil while increasing crop yields. The magnitude of biochar's potential in this regard will depend on crop yield benefits, which have not been well-characterized across different soils and biochars. Using data from 84 studies, we employ meta-analytical, missing data, and semiparametric statistical methods to explain heterogeneity in crop yield responses across different soils, biochars, and agricultural management factors, and then estimate potential changes in yield across different soil environments globally. We find that soil cation exchange capacity and organic carbon were strong predictors of yield response, with low cation exchange and low carbon associated with positive response. We also find that yield response increases over time since initial application, compared to non-biochar controls. High reported soil clay content and low soil pH were weaker predictors of higher yield response. No biochar parameters in our dataset—biochar pH, percentage carbon content, or temperature of pyrolysis—were significant predictors of yield impacts. Projecting our fitted model onto a global soil database, we find the largest potential increases in areas with highly weathered soils, such as those characterizing much of the humid tropics. Richer soils characterizing much of the world's important agricultural areas appear to be less likely to benefit from biochar.Keywords
This publication has 40 references indexed in Scilit:
- Biochar and its effects on plant productivity and nutrient cycling: a meta-analysisGCB Bioenergy, 2013
- Fire-derived organic carbon in soil turns over on a centennial scaleBiogeosciences (online), 2012
- Biochar: A Synthesis of Its Agronomic Impact beyond Carbon SequestrationJournal of Environmental Quality, 2012
- A quantitative review of the effects of biochar application to soils on crop productivity using meta-analysisAgriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 2011
- Effect of biochar amendment on yield and methane and nitrous oxide emissions from a rice paddy from Tai Lake plain, ChinaAgriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 2010
- Sustainable biochar to mitigate global climate changeNature Communications, 2010
- Influence of Biochars on Nitrous Oxide Emission and Nitrogen Leaching from Two Contrasting SoilsJournal of Environmental Quality, 2010
- Potential mechanisms for achieving agricultural benefits from biochar application to temperate soils: a reviewPlant and Soil, 2010
- A Review of Biochar and Its Use and Function in SoilPublished by Elsevier BV ,2010
- Centennial black carbon turnover observed in a Russian steppe soilBiogeosciences (online), 2008