Abid, Hafiz Usama (2024) Dairy manure and biochar application enhance soil health, forage yield and nutritional quality of silage corn cultivated in podzolic soils in boreal climate. Masters thesis, Memorial University of Newfoundland.
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Abstract
Podzolic soils cover around 485 million hectares globally, mostly in temperate and boreal regions, and have specific features such as low fertility, acidity, the accumulation of organic matter, aluminum, and iron in the illuvial B layer, and limited water retention capacity. Dairy manure (DM) is a rich source of mineral nutrients and improves the physicochemical and biological properties of the soil, yet it is susceptible to nutrient leaching. Biochar (BC) is a carbon-rich substance that has a large surface area, porosity, and the potential to adsorb nutrients can be used with DM to prevent the loss of nutrients through leaching. In 2016, a field trial was conducted to assess the impacts of short term DM and BC applications on silage corn growth, yield, nutritional quality and physicochemical and biological properties of a podzolic soil under boreal climate. The experiment consisted of seven treatments: 1) DM with high N conc. (0.23%) (M1), 2) DM with low N conc. (0.079%) (M2), 3) Inorganic nitrogen (IN), 4) M1+BC, 5) M2 + BC, 6) IN+BC, and 7) Control (CT). BC was applied once in 2016 @ 20 Mg/ha before seeding, and DM was applied every year from 2016 to 2021, except for 2020. DM was applied @ 30,000 L/ha following the practice of local farmers. Results revealed that DM and BC applications significantly improved chlorophyll content, yield and quality of silage corn as well as soil physical (bulk density and porosity) and chemical (soil pH, ammonium and nitrate, total carbon and nitrogen) properties. DM application significantly improved soil fungal community structure as compared to CT. Our results conclude that DM and BC application improved crop growth yield and quality as well as soil physicochemical properties in podzolic soils. However, long term effects of DM and BC application are required to fully understand the impact of these management practices on soil physicochemical and biological characteristics in podzolic soils under boreal climate.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Masters) |
|---|---|
| URI: | http://research.library.mun.ca/id/eprint/16577 |
| Item ID: | 16577 |
| Additional Information: | Includes bibliographical references -- Restricted until July 25, 2025 |
| Keywords: | biochar, manure, corn, podzols |
| Department(s): | Grenfell Campus > School of Science and the Environment > Boreal Ecosystems and Agricultural Sciences |
| Date: | June 2024 |
| Date Type: | Submission |
| Library of Congress Subject Heading: | Biochar; Manures; Corn--Silage; Podzol; Soil fertility; Soil management; Soil structure |
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