Postdoc project Simon "Soil Amelioration with Biochar in a Natural Ecosystem (SABINE) and Biochar Application to Soil in a Natural Ecosystem (BASE)"
These projects investigate the effects of biochar application to semi-natural grasslands. Both projects utilise an experimental site which is set up on the Veluwe national park in the Netherlands.
The first project, SABINE, looks at the mid to long term effects of two biochars over four successive years. Biochar was produced from grass cuttings collected from the site and pyrolysed in two separate batches at 400°C or 600°C. This was applied to soil at a rate equivalent to 10 t ha-1. The effects on on above ground and below ground communities have been monitored over the past four growing seasons. This has been combined with a range of soil chemical and physical analyses and greenhouse experiments to investigate mechanisms behind observed effects.
The second project, BASE, investigates the effects of biochar applied at different application rates up to 50 t ha-1 equivalents, on above ground productivity, plant community and soil physical effects (e.g. field-saturated flow and soil water release curves). This is combined with cutting edge characterisation of the chemical and physical properties of biochars, including X-ray microtomography.
Projects http://base-project.org/
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