Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions
Water stress and nutrient stress are major limiting factors affecting crop productivity. Biochar-based organic fertilizers improve soil nutrient availability, water use efficiency (WUE), and crop yields under these adverse conditions. This study investigated the mechanistic effects of biochar–bokash...
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2025-04-01
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| author | Gyanendra Dhakal Takeshi Fujino Srijana Thapa Magar Yuji Araki |
| author_facet | Gyanendra Dhakal Takeshi Fujino Srijana Thapa Magar Yuji Araki |
| author_sort | Gyanendra Dhakal |
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| description | Water stress and nutrient stress are major limiting factors affecting crop productivity. Biochar-based organic fertilizers improve soil nutrient availability, water use efficiency (WUE), and crop yields under these adverse conditions. This study investigated the mechanistic effects of biochar–bokashi mixtures under a controlled glasshouse pot experiment on soil fertility, available nutrients, soil moisture, plant water use efficiency (PWUE), and wheat yield parameters under three moisture levels. Four treatments were included, (1) a control, (2) bokashi only, (3) 1% biochar + bokashi, and (4) 2% biochar + bokashi, under 30% (IR<sub>30</sub>), 50% (IR<sub>50</sub>), and 60% (IR<sub>60</sub>) field capacity, totaling twelve treatments in a completely randomized design with three replications. The combined bokashi–biochar application significantly (<i>p</i> < 0.05) improved growth parameters and yields, including plant height, number of fertile tillers (NFT), number of spikes (NS), spike length (SL), 1000-grain weight, biological yield (BY), root biomass, and grain yield (GY), compared to the control and bokashi-only treatments. Bokashi with 1% biochar exhibited superior agronomic performance over the other treatments, including 2% biochar. Biochar addition enhanced soil moisture and PWUE across irrigation levels. Bokashi–biochar treatments under IR<sub>30</sub> outperformed the control and bokashi-only treatments under IR<sub>60</sub>, highlighting biochar’s effectiveness in alleviating water stress and increasing yields. Moreover, co-application significantly increased soil pH while enhancing the organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorous and exchangeable potassium nutrient levels, which positively correlated with yield. Bokashi–biochar mixtures have been proven to be an effective strategy to enhance soil fertility, increase soil moisture to alleviate water stress and support sustainable wheat production under water- and nutrient-limited conditions. |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-04-01 |
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| series | Soil Systems |
| spelling | doaj-art-ff4a8e1f64c44d2fa7da900affe632242025-08-20T03:27:40ZengMDPI AGSoil Systems2571-87892025-04-01923310.3390/soilsystems9020033Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit ConditionsGyanendra Dhakal0Takeshi Fujino1Srijana Thapa Magar2Yuji Araki3Department of Environmental Science and Technology, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, JapanDepartment of Environmental Science and Technology, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, JapanDepartment of Environmental Science and Technology, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Saitama University, Saitama 338-8570, JapanFaculty of Education, Saitama University, 255 Shimo-Okubo, Sakura-Ku, Saitama 338-8570, JapanWater stress and nutrient stress are major limiting factors affecting crop productivity. Biochar-based organic fertilizers improve soil nutrient availability, water use efficiency (WUE), and crop yields under these adverse conditions. This study investigated the mechanistic effects of biochar–bokashi mixtures under a controlled glasshouse pot experiment on soil fertility, available nutrients, soil moisture, plant water use efficiency (PWUE), and wheat yield parameters under three moisture levels. Four treatments were included, (1) a control, (2) bokashi only, (3) 1% biochar + bokashi, and (4) 2% biochar + bokashi, under 30% (IR<sub>30</sub>), 50% (IR<sub>50</sub>), and 60% (IR<sub>60</sub>) field capacity, totaling twelve treatments in a completely randomized design with three replications. The combined bokashi–biochar application significantly (<i>p</i> < 0.05) improved growth parameters and yields, including plant height, number of fertile tillers (NFT), number of spikes (NS), spike length (SL), 1000-grain weight, biological yield (BY), root biomass, and grain yield (GY), compared to the control and bokashi-only treatments. Bokashi with 1% biochar exhibited superior agronomic performance over the other treatments, including 2% biochar. Biochar addition enhanced soil moisture and PWUE across irrigation levels. Bokashi–biochar treatments under IR<sub>30</sub> outperformed the control and bokashi-only treatments under IR<sub>60</sub>, highlighting biochar’s effectiveness in alleviating water stress and increasing yields. Moreover, co-application significantly increased soil pH while enhancing the organic carbon, total nitrogen, available phosphorous and exchangeable potassium nutrient levels, which positively correlated with yield. Bokashi–biochar mixtures have been proven to be an effective strategy to enhance soil fertility, increase soil moisture to alleviate water stress and support sustainable wheat production under water- and nutrient-limited conditions.https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/9/2/33biocharbokashi fermentationirrigationcrop productionsoil fertility |
| spellingShingle | Gyanendra Dhakal Takeshi Fujino Srijana Thapa Magar Yuji Araki Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions Soil Systems biochar bokashi fermentation irrigation crop production soil fertility |
| title | Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions |
| title_full | Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions |
| title_fullStr | Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions |
| title_short | Co-Application of Bokashi and Biochar Alleviates Water Stress, Improves Soil Fertility and Enhances Wheat Production Under Water-Deficit Conditions |
| title_sort | co application of bokashi and biochar alleviates water stress improves soil fertility and enhances wheat production under water deficit conditions |
| topic | biochar bokashi fermentation irrigation crop production soil fertility |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2571-8789/9/2/33 |
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