Biochar is a type of soil amendment made from the burning of organic materials such as wood, straw, and manure. It helps to improve soil structure, increase water and nutrient retention, and promote beneficial microbial activity. In addition, it has the potential to capture and store carbon in soil, making it a great choice for environmentally conscious gardeners. Biochar raw is an ideal choice for creating your own soil amendments that will improve soil fertility and health.
TEAM RAW BIOCHAR - CREATE YOUR OWN SOIL AMENDMENT 300L
Biochar is made by heating plant material without oxygen in a process called pyrolysis. We use the tree wood from our own farm and from local farmers. If you burn wood in a bonfire all the Carbon is released into the atmosphere as Carbon Dioxide, and polutes, but by using our own designed and manufactured kiln , we achieve a temperature range for pyrolysis from 450°C to 900°C and no Carbon Dixide pollution.
The plant material does not burn completely, but turns into glowing charcoal in about 4 hours and then the fire should be extinguished with water, otherwise it will turn to ash. All that remains is carbon, normally in the form of the origina log etc, but we then allow the biochar to sit for up to 8 hours in the kin befire tipping it out and testing it for any metal content. ( Its amazing how many nails we find).
The surface area of just a gram is about the size of a football pitch, so we gring it down to a granulated form for better results The smaller the granules the greater the overal surface area for the volume purcgased. Please note this is raw, so if you add it to your soil it will try to take from your plants nutriants!!! They will suffer, which is not the idea, so you must inoculate it before use. Tips on this at the bottom and in our video links.
There will be some confusion over te name, so to be clear, Biochar and charcoal are both types of carbon-rich solids that are obtained via the pyrolysis of biomass in the absence of oxygen. However, they differ in their production temperature, porosity, surface area, stability, and intended use. Biochar is made at higher temperatures than charcoal, resulting in a more porous and stable form of carbon that has a larger surface area and can host beneficial microorganisms. Biochar is used as a soil amendment to improve soil structure and sequester carbon. Charcoal is made at lower temperatures than biochar, resulting in a less porous and less stable form of carbon that decomposes faster in the soil. Charcoal is used for heating or cooking, especially for barbequing and normally has parafin or other chemicals added.
BEFORE USE!!
When it arrives leave the biochar in urine for a period of a week. This could be animal or human urine, there’s little difference. The urine starts as a sterile, nutrient rich liquid which soaks into the char and provides a feedstock for the microbes who move in later. This is one method often used in scientific studies of biochar. A mix I have used, is I litre of urine to 2kg of raw biochar, so about a days pee! Mix well and there is no smell.