Effect of water management and application of soil amendment biochar on growth and yield of rice (Oryza sativa L.) on peat soil

Abstract

Increased food production has become a global urgency due to population growth and limited productive land. Efficient use of resources, particularly water, and optimization of marginal land such as peat soil are important strategies in sustainable agricultural production. This study introduces a novel combination of water depth management and biochar application to improve rice growth and yield on peat soils, an approach that has been rarely explored. The study was conducted using a Randomized Block Design with a 4 × 4 factorial pattern consisting of two factors. The first factor was water depth with four levels: 0, 3, 6, and 9 cm. The second factor was biochar dose with four levels: 0, 4, 6, and 8 tons ha−1. The results showed that water level did not significantly affect rice plant growth and yield. However, biochar dose treatment significantly affected plant height growth and plant productivity. The control treatment (without biochar) produced a yield of 1.47 ton ha−1, which falls within the typical range of rice yields on peat soils (1.1-1.9 tons ha−1). Application of 6 tons ha−1 of biochar increased yield by 1.12 tons ha−1 compared to the control, representing an improvement of approximately 76%. These findings indicate that the combination of water depth management and biochar application effectively improves rice productivity on peat soils. This study contributes new insights to peatland rice management by recommending a water depth of 0 cm combined with 6 tons ha−1 of biochar as an effective and sustainable strategy to enhance rice yield.