Utilization of biochar in improving yield of wheat in Bangladesh

Biochar is a carbon-rich co-product resulting from pyrolysis process. Biochar amendment to soil can improve productivity of wheat plant. Therefore, the utilization of biochar in improving yield of wheat in Bangladesh was investigated in this study. Soil pH decreased 0.8 units and organic matter increased 0.67% after 159 days of incubation for the biochar amendment. Several yield parameters was similar between Bangladesh Agricultural Research Council (BARC) recommended fertilizer and half of BARC recommended fertilizer plus rice straw added treatment. This study also found that the combination of rice straw biochar with half of BARC recommended fertilizer gave better effect than single application rice straw biochar as well as gave the highest yield of wheat in the same treatment. Rice straw biochar can have the potential to decrease dependence on chemical fertilizer for wheat production. Therefore, utilization of biochar is a viable option to improve yield of wheat in Bangladesh.