https://ogma.newcastle.edu.au/vital/access/ /manager/Index ${session.getAttribute("locale")} 5 https://ogma.newcastle.edu.au/vital/access/ /manager/Repository/uon:42991 100 countries, and their distribution is extensive and widespread in arid and semi-arid regions of the world. In order to meet the challenges of global food security, it is imperative to bring barren salt-affected soils under cultivation. Various inorganic and organic amendments are used to reclaim the salt-affected lands. The selection of a sustainable ameliorant is largely determined by the site-specific geographical and soil physicochemical parameters. Recently, biochar (solid carbonaceous residue, produced under oxygen-free or oxygen-limited conditions at temperatures ranging from 300 to 1000 ^OC) has attracted considerable attention as a soil amendment. An emerging pool of knowledge shows that biochar addition is effective in improving physical, chemical and biological properties of salt-affected soils. However, some studies have also found an increase in soil salinity and sodicity with biochar application at high rates. Further, the high cost associated with production of biochar and high application rates remains a significant challenge to its widespread use in areas affected by salinity and sodicity. Moreover, there is relatively limited information on the long-term behavior of salt-affected soils subjected to biochar applications. The main objective of the present paper was to review, analyze and discuss the recent studies investigating a role of biochar in improving soil properties and plant growth in salt-affected soils. This review emphasizes that using biochar as an organic amendment for sustainable and profitable use of salt-affected soils would not be practicable as long as low-cost methods for the production of biochar are not devised.]]> Wed 28 Feb 2024 15:22:05 AEDT ]]> https://ogma.newcastle.edu.au/vital/access/ /manager/Repository/uon:41068 2SO₄-H₂O₂ digested) was the dominant P fraction (37–51% of total P) in the aerobic soil under wheat, while it was decreased by 18–27% in flooded soil under rice cultivation. In contrast, the sparingly soluble Ca-bound P (HCl-Pi) increased from 25–31% under wheat cultivation to 41–50% under flooded rice (paddy) cultivation where reducing conditions are expected to prevail under submerged paddy soil conditions. The crop rotation not only altered the sparingly available P fraction but also influenced soil labile P, especially the organic P form. Compared with the rice soil, a 4-fold increase in the labile P fraction (NaHCO₃-Po) was observed in wheat soil. The moderately labile P fraction (NaOH-extractable) showed a similar trend to that of labile P pool, but the increased NaOH-Po in wheat soil was relatively small. The relatively rapid change in the residual P fraction was attributed to oxidation-reduction cycles of Fe oxides between flooded (rice) and aerobic (wheat) soil conditions. Conclusions: Wetting and drying cycles associated with a rice-wheat crop rotation promoted the transformation of the sparingly soluble soil P fraction between crops, which was attributed to changes in soil redox conditions, particularly Fe cycling. This indicated that the rice-wheat crop rotation can draw upon the sparingly soluble P fraction for crop production, thus relying less on fertilizer-applied P.]]> Wed 28 Feb 2024 14:57:36 AEDT ]]> https://ogma.newcastle.edu.au/vital/access/ /manager/Repository/uon:47969 Mon 13 Feb 2023 15:58:55 AEDT ]]>