BIOCHAR SOIL APPLICATION IN IMPROVING SOIL MICROBIAL HEALTH AND DIVERSITY IN SAN JOAQUIN AGRICULTURAL SOILS

Agricultural sustainability is an increasing issue in modern society as populations grow and the need to feed more people increases. In order to sustain food production on farms in more sustainable ways the application of biochar is becoming an increasingly popular amendment to soil. Biochar can also be produced using agricultural residues decreasing the amount of waste and CO₂ released from agricultural burnings. Biochar also has benefits to soil health by improving the access to key nutrients for microbes and increasing the diversity and health of the microbiome and the plants. In this research, we use soil samples collected from biochar-applied agricultural fields and control fields to access the soil microbial communities in improving soil health in the San Joaquin Valley. Soil samples were taken monthly to observe community changes in soils. The extracted DNA quantities in the first month of June measure DNA quantities for the control without biochar at 3662.67 (ng DNA/g of soil). The biochar mixes were lower in this first month with the biochar containing hardpan having a quantity of 1911.91 ng/g. The soil mix plus biochar mix contained 2202.2 ng/g. In August the biochar mixed with soil had the highest amount of DNA with 2800 ng/g, while the control had less than the biochar only plot and the soil mix at 2216.08 ng/g. The hardpan mix fell below all plots at 847.63 ng/g. These results do not describe diversity of soil but start to give insights on changes in microbial populations happening between plots of biochar mixes. To understand the diversity of microbial communities the samples will be sent to be sequenced at UC Berkeley. The sequencing will also allow us to understand the types of microbial communities present in the soil, such as denitrifiers which control the availability of nitrogen and the release of greenhouse gases such as N₂O.