This book addresses the global challenge of feeding a growing population while grappling with diminishing land resources, deteriorating soil quality, and the impact of climate change. Its core focus is the role of soil health in sustaining and enhancing crop production. Key factors for successful agriculture include organic carbon levels, microbial activity, nutrient availability, optimal pH, and redox conditions. Additionally, the book explores the issue of agricultural waste, including rice and wheat straw, surplus vegetables, and various forms of biological waste like kitchen scraps and animal waste, all of which contain valuable nutrients.

The book highlights the significance of harnessing the potential within biological waste, rich in essential elements such as phosphorus, potassium, iron, zinc, and copper. It emphasizes the sustainable use of biochar, a material produced through the pyrolysis of diverse biological waste sources. Biochar application, explored in various dosages for different crops and fields, can effectively enhance soil pH, redox potential, organic carbon content, and essential nutrient availability while mitigating the bioavailability of toxic metals. It includes the generation and characterization of biochar, shedding light on its vital role in abiotic stress amelioration and growth and yield improvement of crops.

This book is a resource material for students, academicians, and scientists seeking up-to-date insights on biochar. By addressing the critical intersection of sustainable agriculture, waste management, and soil health, this book equips readers with a valuable resource to navigate the challenges of modern farming practices.

Autorentext

Dr. (Mrs.) Shraddha Singh is a senior Scientific Officer at Nuclear Agriculture & Biotechnology Division (NA&BTD), Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Mumbai. She obtained Ph.D. in Botany from CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (CSIR-NBRI) and University of Lucknow in 2003. She is involved in understanding the heavy metals/metalloids induced stress on plants and underlying mechanism. She is also involved in designing various plant-based strategies to remediate the heavy metals from the contaminated water and soil, specially from the contaminated sites. She has more than twenty-five years of research experience in the field of plant-environment interactions. She has published several research and review articles in international journals of high repute.

Dr. Sudhakar Srivastava is an Assistant Professor in the Institute of Environment and Sustainable Development (IESD), Banaras Hindu University (BHU). He obtained Ph.D. in Botany from CSIR-National Botanical Research Institute (CSIR-NBRI) and University of Lucknow in 2008. He has more than nineteen years of research experience in the field of plant-metal interactions. He has published more than 125 research and review articles in high impact journals as well as edited three books. Dr. Srivastava is NAAS Associate of National Academy of Agricultural Sciences. He has received Young Scientist Award of National Academy of Sciences, India (NASI), Allahabad in 2011 and Young Scientist Award from Uttar Pradesh Council of Science & Technology (UPCST) in 2013-2014. Dr. Srivastava is also a Fellow of Indian Society of Environmental Botanists (ISEB), Lucknow.