Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40685387›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2025

Effects of biochar amendment at various soil depths on maize roots and growth indices.

S Gaurav, B Diptanu, Chandra M Mehta, K Prasann, E Nishihara, K Inubushi, S Sudo, S Hayashida, P K Patra, Tatiana Minkina and 1 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

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Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Review
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

11 authors.

S GauravDepartment of Agronomy, School of Agriculture, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, India.
B DiptanuDepartment of Agronomy, School of Agriculture, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, India.
Chandra M MehtaDepartment of Agronomy, School of Agriculture, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, India. chandra.18376@lpu.co.in.
K PrasannDepartment of Agronomy, School of Agriculture, Lovely Professional University, Phagwara, Punjab, India.
E NishiharaTottori University, Tottori, Japan.
K InubushiDepartment of Agricultural Chemistry, Faculty of Applied Biosciences, Tokyo University of Agriculture, Tokyo, Japan.
S SudoNIAES-NARO, Tsukuba, Japan.
S HayashidaResearch Institute for Humanity and Nature, Kyoto, Japan.
P K PatraJapan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC), Yokosuka, Kanagawa, Japan.
Tatiana MinkinaAcademy of Biology and Biotechnology, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia.
Vishnu D RajputAcademy of Biology and Biotechnology, Southern Federal University, Rostov-on-Don, Russia. rvishnu@sfedu.ru.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Biochar application in the soil has shown its potential for improved plant growth, root structure, and nutrient availability. However, uncertainties remain regarding the optimal depth for biochar application and its interaction with roots, which significantly influence plant growth and development. This transparent rhizobox trial consists of five treatments: control treatment (T1) with recommended dose of fertilizer, and four biochar addition treatments with different depths viz. 5 (T2), 10 (T3), 15 (T4) and 20 cm (T5). FESEM, EDX-Spectroscopy was performed to elucidate the change in morphology and element distribution pattern of biochar after application in soil. Fresh biochar has 53.7% carbon and 19.9% oxygen, however, aged biochar shown 37.4% carbon and 36.4% oxygen content. The T5 exhibit the best outcomes, with the most significant increment in maize root traits over the control treatment (T1). In particular, T5 recorded a maximum improvement in root length (+ 48.2%), root volume (+ 42.7%) and root dry biomass (+ 56.7%) compared to the control treatment when biochar was applied at 20 cm soil depth. Shoot traits at 20 cm biochar incorporation revealed an increase in shoot fresh biomass (+ 23.1%), shoot dry biomass (+ 15%), leaf area (+ 50.5%) and number of leaves (+ 40.7%) as compared to the control treatment. As compared to the control, a considerable rise in soil nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium was observed in biochar amendment at 20 cm depth, with the highest nitrogen in T5 (20.9%), phosphorus in T5 (103%), and the percentage increase in potassium in T5 (55.5%). One of the most consistently prevalent molecules examined by GC-MS was methyl stearate, a fatty acid ester detected in all five treatments. Methyl stearate content increased as the depth of biochar increased: T1 (10.26%), T2 (8.67%), T3 (12.40%), T4 (12.93%), and T5 (14.65%). Overall, the findings of this study suggest that uniform application of biochar in the top soil layer significantly enhances the above- and below-ground attributes of plants.

Indexed as

CharcoalPlant RootsSoilZea maysBiomassCarbonFertilizersNitrogenbiocharCarbonCharcoalFertilizersNitrogenSoilApplication depthBiocharPlant growthRoot traitsSoil amendment

Identifiers

PMID40685387
PMCPMC12277442

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.