Production of Eucalyptus urograndis plants cultivated with activated biochar

Abstract

The search for new substrates for the production of seedlings is of great importance for the evolution of the nursery sector. Biochar is an alternative for the use of plant residues, both in soils and as a component of substrates. The main objective of the study was to correlate substrates using biochar (B) and substrates using activated biochar (AB) in different concentrations with biometric and nutritional variables, aside from its effect on the growth of Eucalyptus seedlings. The experiment was conducted in a nursery, located in Sinop, MT, Brazil. The experiment was design in four blocks of ten treatments; commercial substrates (CS), nursery substrate (NS - 50% CS and 50% carbonized rice husk and coconut fiber) and eight treatments represented by B and AB additions to each commercial substrate (concentration of 25; 50, 75 and 100% - determined as B25, B50, B75, B100, AB25, AB50, AB75, AB100). At the end of a 90 days cycle after staking, plant height, stem diameter, leaf number and Dickson Quality Index (DQI), fresh and dry biomass accumulation and nutrient concentration in the aerial part were determined. The substrates with activated biochar and the nursery substrate presented superior results for biometric variables.