- Title
- Biochar built soil carbon over a decade by stabilizing rhizodeposits
- Creator
- Weng, Zhe (Han); Van Zwieten, Lukas; Cozzolino, Daniel; Araujo, Joyce R.; Archanjo, Braulio S.; Cowie, Annette; Singh, Bhupinder Pal; Tavakkoli, Ehsan; Joseph, Stephen; Macdonald, Lynne M.; Rose, Terry J.; Rose, Michael T.; Kimber, Stephen W. L.; Morris, Stephen
- Relation
- Nature Climate Change Vol. 7, Issue 5, p. 371-379
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/NCLIMATE3276
- Publisher
- Nature Publishing Group
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2017
- Description
- Biochar can increase the stable C content of soil. However, studies on the longer-term role of plant–soil–biochar interactions and the consequent changes to native soil organic carbon (SOC) are lacking. Periodic 13CO2 pulse labelling of ryegrass was used to monitor belowground C allocation, SOC priming, and stabilization of root-derived C for a 15-month period—commencing 8.2 years after biochar (Eucalyptus saligna, 550 °C) was amended into a subtropical ferralsol. We found that field-aged biochar enhanced the belowground recovery of new root-derived C (13C) by 20%, and facilitated negative rhizosphere priming (it slowed SOC mineralization by 5.5%, that is, 46 g CO2-C m−2 yr−1). Retention of root-derived 13C in the stable organo-mineral fraction (<53 μm) was also increased (6%, P < 0.05). Through synchrotron-based spectroscopic analysis of bulk soil, field-aged biochar and microaggregates (<250 μm), we demonstrate that biochar accelerates the formation of microaggregates via organo-mineral interactions, resulting in the stabilization and accumulation of SOC in a rhodic ferralsol.
- Subject
- Biochar; soil carbon; stabilizing rhizodeposits; native soil
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1351596
- Identifier
- uon:30741
- Identifier
- ISSN:1758-678X
- Language
- eng
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