UNDO Carbon Ltd, London, United Kingdom.
Organic Research Centre, Cirencester, Gloucestershire, United Kingdom.
PLoS One. 2024 Mar 27;19(3):e0295031. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0295031. eCollection 2024.
Addressing soil nutrient degradation and global warming requires novel solutions. Enhanced weathering using crushed basalt rock is a promising dual-action strategy that can enhance soil health and sequester carbon dioxide. This study examines the short-term effects of basalt amendment on spring oat (Avena sativa L.) during the 2022 growing season in NE England. The experimental design consisted of four blocks with control and basalt-amended plots, and two cultivation types within each treatment, laid out in a split plot design. Basalt (18.86 tonnes ha-1) was incorporated into the soil during seeding. Tissue, grain and soil samples were collected for yield, nutrient, and pH analysis. Basalt amendment led to significantly higher yields, averaging 20.5% and 9.3% increases in direct drill and ploughed plots, respectively. Soil pH was significantly higher 256 days after rock application across cultivation types (direct drill: on average 6.47 vs. 6.76 and ploughed: on average 6.69 vs. 6.89, for control and basalt-amended plots, respectively), likely due to rapidly dissolving minerals in the applied basalt, such as calcite. Indications of growing season differences in soil pH are observed through direct measurement of lower manganese and iron uptake in plants grown on basalt-amended soil. Higher grain and tissue potassium, and tissue calcium uptake were observed in basalt-treated crops. Notably, no accumulation of potentially toxic elements (arsenic, cadmium, chromium, nickel) was detected in the grain, indicating that crops grown using this basaltic feedstock are safe for consumption. This study indicates that basalt amendments can improve agronomic performance in sandy clay-loam agricultural soil under temperate climate conditions. These findings offer valuable insights for producers in temperate regions who are considering using such amendments, demonstrating the potential for improved crop yields and environmental benefits while ensuring crop safety.
解决土壤养分退化和全球变暖问题需要新的解决方案。利用碎玄武岩进行增强风化是一种很有前途的双重作用策略，它可以增强土壤健康并固存二氧化碳。本研究在英格兰东北部考察了 2022 年生长季中玄武岩改良对春燕麦（Avena sativa L.）的短期影响。实验设计由四个区块组成，每个区块包括对照和玄武岩改良区，每个处理区内又有两种耕作方式，采用裂区设计。在播种时将玄武岩（18.86 吨/公顷）混入土壤中。采集产量、养分和 pH 值分析所需的组织、籽粒和土壤样本。玄武岩改良导致产量显著增加，直接播种和耕翻地块的平均产量分别增加了 20.5%和 9.3%。在耕作方式下，土壤 pH 值在施岩后 256 天显著升高（直接播种：对照和改良区的平均值分别为 6.47 和 6.76；耕翻：对照和改良区的平均值分别为 6.69 和 6.89），这可能是由于应用的玄武岩中迅速溶解的矿物质，如方解石所致。在改良土壤上种植的植物中，锰和铁吸收量较低，表明生长季土壤 pH 值存在差异。在施用玄武岩的作物中，钾和钙在籽粒和组织中的吸收量较高，而钾和钙在组织中的吸收量较高。值得注意的是，在籽粒中未检测到潜在有毒元素（砷、镉、铬、镍）的积累，这表明使用这种玄武岩原料种植的作物可以安全食用。本研究表明，玄武岩改良剂可以改善温带气候条件下砂质粘壤土农业土壤的农艺性能。这些发现为温带地区的生产者提供了有价值的信息，他们正在考虑使用这种改良剂，证明了提高作物产量和环境效益的潜力，同时确保了作物的安全性。
