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Effects of biochar, hydrochar and nitrogen fertilization on greenhouse gas fluxes, soil organic carbon pools, and biomass yield of a boreal legume grassland

dc.contributor.authorBhattarai, Hem Raj
dc.contributor.authorHonkanen, Ella
dc.contributor.authorRuhanen, Hanna
dc.contributor.authorSoinnie, Helena
dc.contributor.authorGil, Jenie
dc.contributor.authorSaghir, Summaira
dc.contributor.authorLappalainen, Reijo
dc.contributor.authorShurpali, Narasinha J.
dc.contributor.departmentid4100211410
dc.contributor.departmentid4100412910
dc.contributor.departmentid4100211210
dc.contributor.departmentid4100211410
dc.contributor.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0002-7965-6496
dc.contributor.orcidhttps://orcid.org/0000-0003-1052-4396
dc.contributor.organizationLuonnonvarakeskus
dc.date.accessioned2025-09-30T06:42:11Z
dc.date.issued2025
dc.description.abstractChar amendment is an option to lower climatic impact of agricultural soils. However, their effect can vary depending on char and soil properties, vegetation type and their interactions. Nutrient poor and acidic soils of boreal region could benefit from char amendment. We conducted a three-month long mesocosm study representing a typical boreal forage-legume grassland to understand the effects of char application on greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, soil organic carbon (SOC) pools and biomass yield. We examined biochar and hydrochar for changes in soil properties, gross nitrogen transformation rates, SOC and its fractions, biomass yield and all three major GHG fluxes. We assessed our results from two different perspectives; one, when chars were added at a uniform rate with fertilizer nitrogen (N) following the farmer’s practice and two, when chars were added based on the char C amount without fertilizer N. We show that only N2O emissions (not CO2 and CH4) were affected when chars were added at a uniform rate with fertilizer N. Biochar increased N2O emissions significantly compared to control whereas hydrochar restricted N2O relative to control and lowered significantly compared to biochar treatments. Biochar with N amendment significantly increased gross NO3− production (gross nitrification) and N2O emissions, indicating a linkage between increased nitrifier activity and N2O emissions. Hydrochar with N amendment showed lower gross nitrification rates and N2O emissions, indicating a reduced nitrifier activity and N2O emissions compared to biochar. Interestingly, hydrochar without N amendment showed lowest N2O emissions with few N2O uptake events and similar gross NO3− consumption and production rates, hinting an enhanced soil N2O reduction/sink mechanism, especially with actively photosynthesizing vegetation. Both chars increased soil particulate organic C (POC) significantly mainly owing to both chars themselves being carbon. The mineral associated organic C (MAOC) remained unaltered. Interestingly, we found significantly lower soil MAOC per unit of char C with biochar than with hydochar amendment, especially when endpoint soil MAOC was compared with initial soil MAOC. Our results suggest that destabilization of MAOC increased more with biochar than with hydrochar, especially with N fertilization and in the presence of actively photosynthesizing vegetation. This was further supported by a significantly greater rise in microbial biomass carbon with hydrochar than with biochar amendment. The total biomass yield remained unaffected. However, biochar with the applied N reduced the timothy grass yield compared to control, implying a reduced uptake of applied N by timothy. Our results shed light on the complex interactions among chars, soil, vegetation and N management. Therefore, future studies should focus on assessing the char amendment impacts including both plant and soil and at the whole agricultural field scale. Chars manufactured from diverse feedstocks need to be investigated for their impacts in diverse agricultural ecosystems, paving the way for their large-scale use.
dc.format.pagerange20 p.
dc.identifier.citationHow to cite: Bhattarai, H.R., Honkanen, E., Ruhanen, H. et al. Effects of biochar, hydrochar and nitrogen fertilization on greenhouse gas fluxes, soil organic carbon pools, and biomass yield of a boreal legume grassland. Biochar 7, 114 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s42773-025-00496-6
dc.identifier.urihttps://jukuri.luke.fi/handle/11111/103064
dc.identifier.urlhttp://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s42773-025-00496-6
dc.identifier.urnURN:NBN:fi-fe2025093098862
dc.language.isoen
dc.okm.avoinsaatavuuskytkin1 = Avoimesti saatavilla
dc.okm.corporatecopublicationei
dc.okm.discipline414
dc.okm.internationalcopublicationon
dc.okm.julkaisukanavaoa1 = Kokonaan avoimessa julkaisukanavassa ilmestynyt julkaisu
dc.okm.selfarchivedon
dc.publisherSpringer Nature
dc.relation.articlenumber114
dc.relation.doi10.1007/s42773-025-00496-6
dc.relation.ispartofseriesBiochar
dc.relation.issn2524-7972
dc.relation.issn2524-7867
dc.relation.numberinseries1
dc.relation.volume7
dc.rightsCC BY 4.0
dc.source.justusid125891
dc.subjectbiochar
dc.subjecthydrochar
dc.subjectboreal legume-forage
dc.subjectnitrogen fertilization
dc.subjectPOC
dc.subjectMAOC
dc.subjectgreenhouse gases
dc.subjectgross nitrogen transformation
dc.teh41007-00249501
dc.teh41007-00322500
dc.titleEffects of biochar, hydrochar and nitrogen fertilization on greenhouse gas fluxes, soil organic carbon pools, and biomass yield of a boreal legume grassland
dc.typepublication
dc.type.okmfi=A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä|sv=A1 Originalartikel i en vetenskaplig tidskrift|en=A1 Journal article (refereed), original research|
dc.type.versionfi=Publisher's version|sv=Publisher's version|en=Publisher's version|

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