Biochar from agricultural waste as a strategic resource for promotion of crop growth and nutrient cycling of soil under drought and salinity stress conditions: a comprehensive review with context of climate change
Ghulam Murtaza, Zeeshan Ahmed, Rashid Iqbal, Gang Deng
Abstract
Abiotic stressors, such as drought and salinity, exert a devastating impact on crop yields, posing a severe threat to global food security. The escalating pace of climate change has intensified the severity of drought and salinity stresses, significantly jeopardizing world’s food supply. Consequently, there is a pressing need to devise techniques and approaches that can bolster food production in face of simultaneous occurrence of salt and drought stresses. The effective use of agricultural waste to produce biochar has the potential to address challenges related to drought and salinity, ultimately supporting crop production and safeguarding food security. Moreover, utilizing biochar made from agricultural waste is an eco-friendly and sustainable strategy to combat climate change challenges. This study conducts a thorough examination and understanding of the multifaceted processes involved in biochar production from agro-waste. It delves into its potential to alleviate the impacts of drought and salinity stresses by influencing physio-biochemical mechanisms, with the ultimate goal of ensuring sustainable crop yields. Biochar application enhances soil properties such as organic matter content, stability of soil aggregates, soil structure, water and nutrient retention ability, and activity of beneficial microbes. This results in a significant improvement in the ability of plants to withstand both salt and drought stresses. Biochar enhances membrane integrity, facilitates water uptake, regulates nutritional balance, and decreases the generation of reactive oxygen species via boosting antioxidant activities. Findings of this study could be valuable in formulating site-specific agro-waste based biochars with desirable traits, aimed at supporting crop production under challenging conditions.