Our research explores the potential of using highly saline water for agricultural irrigation, a pressing issue made increasingly critical by climate change and pollution impacts on water resources. In this study, we examine the effects of biochar application, at dosages of 1% and 3%, on wheat crops irrigated with water at two distinct salinity levels (0.63 and 10 dS/m). The goal is to determine whether biochar can mitigate the negative effects of salinity on plant growth, potentially making saline water resources viable for agricultural use, particularly in arid and semi-arid regions where freshwater availability is scarce.
The results indicate promising outcomes, particularly for wheat plants treated with 1% biochar under low salinity conditions (0.63 dS/m), where they reached an average height of 26.6 cm, while plants in the control group, without biochar, showed a significantly shorter average height of 17 cm. Biochar-treated plants also exhibited notably higher chlorophyll levels, critical for photosynthesis and plant health. Specifically, chlorophyll a concentrations ranged from 29.8 to 20.9 µg/ml, and chlorophyll b from 54 to 23 µg/ml, in biochar-treated plants, exceeding the levels observed in untreated plants at both salinity levels.
Moreover, both 1% and 3% biochar applications resulted in higher chlorophyll concentrations compared to the control, indicating biochar’s effectiveness in mitigating the physiological stresses imposed by salinity. The study highlights that while lower salinity promoted higher chlorophyll a levels, untreated plants exposed to high salinity suffered significant chlorophyll reduction. These findings suggest that biochar application could serve as an effective strategy for enhancing crop resilience in saline conditions, ultimately supporting sustainable agriculture by enabling the productive use of saline water resources. Biochar’s role in reducing salinity stress may offer a transformative approach for regions challenged by limited freshwater supplies, promoting both food security and environmental sustainability.
