| Livestock Research for Rural Development 29 (7) 2017 | Guide for preparation of papers | LRRD Newsletter | Citation of this paper |
The purpose of this study was to evaluate the use of biochar and partial peeling of the stems to accelerate the germination of Mulberry ( Morus alba) cuttings. The experiment was designed as a 2*5 factorial in a completely randomized design (CRD) with four replicates. The factors were: Peeling of stem (P: Peeled, N: Not peeled); Biochar levels of 0, 1, 2, 3 and 4% of the soil. Peeling was by scraping off the epidermis of the bottom 3cm of the stakes. The cuttings were planted in soil amended with the biochar in 2 liter capacity plastic bags.
Peeling the bottom 3cm of cuttings of mulberry increased the rate of germination and the proportion of cuttings that developed into viable plants. Amending the soil with biochar improved the rate of germination of the mulberry cuttings as well as increasing pH and water holding capacity of the soil.
Key words: pH, forage trees, water holding capacity, soil
The study described in this paper was a follow-up to an earlier experiment (Boumay et al 2017) to corroborate the benefits of partial peeling of stem cuttings and of soil amendment with biochar on the germination of forage trees, in this case mulberry (Morus alba).
The hypothesis to be tested was that biochar amendment of the soil together with partial peeling of the base of the cuttings would improve the germination rate and survival of cuttings of the mulberry tree.
The experiment was conducted in the Centre for Developing Sustainable Agriculture, Nasae Village, Keoudom District, Vientiane Province, Lao PDR from May to August 2016.
The experiment was designed as a 2*5 factorial in a completely randomized design (CRD) with four replicates. The factors were:
P: Peeled
N: Not peeled
0, 1, 2, 3 and 4 % of the weight of the soil.
Mulberry branches were selected with 5-7 leaves and which were about 25cm long and 1-3cm in diameter. The branches were cut into stakes about 20cm in length. Alternate stakes were then peeled (the cortex was removed over the last 3cm of the stake) or not peeled (Photo 1).
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| Photo 1. Peeling of the lower 3cm of the stakes |
The stakes were planted in 2-liter plastic bags in soil amended with biochar according to the treatments (Photos 2 ad 3). Biochar was produced by carbonization of rice husk in a “top-lit”, updraft gasifier stove (Olivier 2010).
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| Photo 2. Filling the plastic bags with soil amended with biochar | Photo 3. The stakes of mulberry planted in the plastic bags |
Data were collected weekly on presence of buds, leaves and branches in the mulberry cuttings.
After 35 days the germinated cuttings were removed from the bags and samples of the soil analysed for pH and water-holding capacity.
The data were analyzed by the GLM option in the ANOVA program of the Minitab software (Minitab 2000). Sources of variation were: biochar level, peeling, interaction biochar*peeling and error.
Peeling the stems of mulberry stakes increased the proportion that germinated within 50 days (Table 1, Figure 1 and Photos 4 and 5).
The pH and water-holding capacity of the soil were increased linearly as biochar levels were increased from zero to 4% of the soil (Table 1, Figures 2 and 3).
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Table 1. Mean values for germination of Mulberry plants and pH and water-holding capacity of the soil amended with biochar |
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Level of biochar in soil, % |
Mean |
SEM |
p |
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0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
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Numbers of plants germinated in each plot |
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Not-peeled |
1.75 |
2..5 |
3 |
3.5 |
3.75 |
2.9 |
0.095 |
<0.001 |
|
Peeled |
2.25 |
3.5 |
3.75 |
4 |
4.5 |
3.6 |
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Mean |
2.00 |
3.00 |
3.38 |
3.75 |
4.13 |
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SEM ±0.15; p<0.001 |
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pH of soil |
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Not peeled |
5.03 |
5.15 |
5.23 |
5.31 |
5.38 |
5.22 |
0.009 |
0.3 |
|
Peeled |
5.05 |
5.14 |
5.20 |
5.28 |
5.37 |
5.21 |
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Mean |
5.03 |
5.14 |
5.21 |
5.30 |
5.38 |
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SEM ±0.014; p<0.001 |
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Water-holding capacity, % |
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Not peeled |
41.5 |
46.3 |
49.0 |
51.8 |
54.0 |
48.5 |
0.25 |
0.13 |
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Peeled |
42.0 |
45.3 |
48.0 |
51.0 |
53.5 |
48.0 |
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Mean |
41.8 |
45.8 |
48.5 |
51.4 |
53.8 |
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SEM ±0.39; p<0.001 |
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| Photo 4. Mulberry (peeled) after 49 days (dead plants 20%) | Photo 5. Mulberry (Not peeled) after 49 days (dead plants 34%) |
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| Figure 1. Effect of peeling and biochar on germination of mulberry cuttings |
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| Figure 2. Effect of biochar on soil pH | Figure 3. Effect of biochar on soil water-holding capacity |
The beneficial effects on germination of the mulberry cuttings of peeling the base of the stake and amending the soil with biochar were similar to what we reported in an earlier experiment with the forage tree Erythrina poeppigiana (Bounmay and Preston 2017). The results are in acccordance with those of Moreno et al (2005) who also reported improved germination in mulberry cuttings when the stems were partially peeled prior to planting.
The positive effects of biochar on pH and water-holding capacity of the soil are supported by results of many experiments in the SE Asia region (see Preston 2015).
The authors would like to express their appreciation to the MEKARN program funded by SIDA, for providing the opportunity and budget to carry out the study, The research was a contribution by the senior author to the degree of Master of Science in Can Tho University, Vietnam. We are grateful to Maria Elena Gomez and Sangkhom Inthapanya for their help in facilitating the execution of the experiment.
Bouaravong B, Dung N N X and Preston T R 2017 Effect of biochar and partial peeling of stems on soil fertility and germination of Erythrina variegata cuttings. Livestock Research for Rural Development. Volume 29, Article #70. http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd29/4/boun29070.html
Moreno F A, Márquez A y Preston T R 2005 Cuatro métodos de propagación vegetativa de Morera (Morus alba). Livestock Research for Rural Development. Vol. 17, Art. No. 58. http://www.lrrd.org/lrrd17/5/more17058.htm
Olivier P 2010 The Small-Scale Production of Food, Fuel, Feed and Fertilizer; a Strategy for the Sustainable Management of Biodegradable Waste. 27c Pham Hong Thai Street, Dalat, Vietnam. wwwwww.mekarn.org/workshops/pakse/html/olivier.docx
Preston T R 2015 The role of biochar in farming systems producing food and energy from biomass. In: Geotherapy: Innovative Methods of Soil Fertility Restoration, Carbon Sequestration and Reversing CO2 Increase (Editor: Thomas J Goreau) CRC Press, Tayler and Francis Group, Boca Raton, Florida USA
Received 6 February 2017; Accepted 26 May 2017; Published 2 July 2017