Zachary Cartwright [00:00:05]:
Is there a way to turn an unwanted, weedy plant species into something valuable and environmentally friendly? Welcome to the drip, where we keep your mind hydrated with some science, music and a mantra. I'm your host Zachary Cartwright, lead food scientist at AQUALAB by Addium. In today's episode, we'll be discussing the use of an additive called biochar as a supplement in potting mixes, some of its advantages, and how biochar can be used to replace other main potting mix ingredients. My guest today is Pratiksha Sihwal, who is a PhD candidate in the department of Agricultural Economics at Oklahoma State University. She's currently working as a graduate research assistant where she's honed her skills in survey design and data analysis. And over the years she's had the opportunity to delve into various aspects of economic research, particularly focusing on consumer behavior and marketing. Hi Pratiksha, welcome to the show. What exactly is Biochar?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:01:05]:
Thank you so much achary for having me. So biochar is a form of charcoal that is produced through the process known as pyrolysis, which involves heating the plant biomass in really high temperature and in a lack of oxygen or anaerobic condition at a temperature like 400 or 500 degrees celsius. And this process convert the organic material into a stable form of carbon, resulting in a porous and carbon rich substance which we called biochar.

Zachary Cartwright [00:01:37]:
And you're looking at using biochar in potting mix. As I understand this is new and novel, it's not really currently done, but if it was used in potting mix, what components would it replace?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:01:47]:
At first, biochar is often used as a soil amendment or as a component of potting mix, so it can replace or augment the other components such as peat moss or vermiculite or perlite. Because peat moss, vermiculite is usually considered as a non renewable because it takes a lot of years for its formation and it takes a really steady, difficult to extract pit moss in long term, so which are traditionally improved the soil structure. So we want to replace this component and add the supplement biochar in the potting mix.

Zachary Cartwright [00:02:28]:
And how big is the biochar market? Is it produced mainly in the US or around the world? Where do you see it being used most often now?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:02:36]:
So the current global biochar market size was estimated at us dollar 541 million in 2023 and it is expected to grow at a rate of 13.9% from 2024 to 2030. And increasing product consumption in producing organic food and its ability to enhance soil fertility and plant growth are expected to be the key factors driving market growth. And if you look at the several countries using biochar, the studies have shown that the south asian country, like Bhutan, India, they are producing biochar in really high amount. And likewise, United States, Australia and several other countries like China are also producing biochar as a large scale.

Zachary Cartwright [00:03:27]:
And I understand that you're looking at biochar from a specific plant or tree species, an eastern redcedar. Why are you looking at the specific type of plant and how does this relate to your research?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:03:39]:
So eastern red cedar is a prominent tree species and it is native to North America. So despite its name cedar, it is not a true cedar member, though it sits in the juniper family. Maybe you have seen like, it's like Christmas look like a tree. It looks harmless. But it is often considered as a weed or unwanted tree because of its invasive nature, because it dominates the entire range, land or ecosystem within a short period of time and replace the other plants into that habitat. Also, it causes considerable loss of cropland and pasture land, especially so, for example, in the context of Oklahoma. According to the OSU extension, current area covered by eastern red cedar in Oklahoma is estimated beyond 61 million acre. And it is growing at the rate of 940 acres per day, which is really a large number.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:04:35]:
Right. And also there was a study conducted among the landowners of southern grand, especially Texas, Nebraska, Oklahoma. Like 56% of the landowners want to control eastern red cedar in their range land. And of course, there are various ways to control these trees, such as mechanical removal, using chemical herbicide, or even burning. But in the long term, all these methods are either expensive or ---- or even affect the environment. Right. And sadly, the cost of controlling it has become a financial burden for landowners. So why don't we use this nuisance or unwanted tree species into something valuable and environmentally friendly product biochar.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:05:17]:
That's why I focused on the potting mix made from eastern red cedar tree, since it is considered as unwanted tree.

Zachary Cartwright [00:05:27]:
And the timing was perfect. I woke up this morning and I always listened to a little news. And just by chance they were talking about eastern redcedar and how it is causing all this headache in the US. And so I think the universe knew that we would be talking about this later. And so it's really interesting how you can take this unwanted species and turn it into something that may be really helpful. I understand that you're trying to assess consumer willingness to buy a potting mix that has biochar in it. How did you go about your research? And how do you assess consumer willingness for something like this?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:05:59]:
For this, at first, I conducted an online survey throughout the United States, and it's to a panel of like 1023 respondents. And for this, we want to know that how the respondent perceived this innovative solution. Especially we focus on the individual who grow plants or buy potting mix because those are the potential consumer for this product. Right. And therefore, we aim to understand consumer preference, attitude and perception towards these potting mix containing biochar, including their benefit and also concern regarding it. And interestingly, our results show that the consumers were willing to pay between one dollar sixty three cents to two dollars, forty two cents more for a cubic foot potting mix containing biochar. And this is a clear indication of the market readiness to embrace this sustainable product. And also it will create an opportunity for the landowners or people that want to get rid of this cedar from their land.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:07:07]:
And by converting it as a supplement, a potting mix. We are not providing only an environmentally friendly solution, but also creating a sustainable market.

Zachary Cartwright [00:07:16]:
And are there any negative impacts that our listeners should also be aware of about biochar? When I looked at this up, it looked like there may be some controversies over it. And even though there are some environmental benefits, what are some of the other things that our listeners should be aware of?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:07:32]:
Yeah, of course, there are several studies that have shown the negative effect of using biohr. It depends on the soil type and the biochar component also. So, for example, there was a study where the biochar made from the mixed feedstock or the pruning of footage showed that the biochar significantly decreased the available water and relatively filled capacity. And also biochar effect on soil erosion. One of the studies showed that the total soil erosion increased by the application of biochar is, in general, biochar is supposed to reduce the soil erosion, but that's not the case based on this study. And likewise, there is another study that shows the biochar effect on this soil salinity. That means the percentage of salt content in the soil was increased by the application of biochar. And also the soil ph also, such as the ph significantly decreased by the use of biochar, making the soil more acidic.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:08:39]:
So, yeah, there are many studies that have shown the negative effect on biochar, but there are definitely more positive and advantages of biochar than this negative effect. I think we should consider the types of biochar that we use, you know, the substrate, like from what material that we make biochar maybe like corn stock or like other crop residue. And also we should consider it on using the soil also because it respond differently in different type of soil.

Zachary Cartwright [00:09:13]:
And even though there are some negatives to consider, will you just remind me what are the positive environmental impacts kind of on a big picture? How can this help our environment if it was to be used more?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:09:25]:
Actually, biochar, the one of the main advantage, I would say, is the greenhouse gas emission is significantly reduced by the use of biochar. Especially biochar helps in the carbon sequestration. I don't know the exact number right now in the top of my head, but there was a study in which the biochar was used in the field of cereal crop, and that studies show that the application of biochar in that field significantly reduced like maybe like two tons or maybe like 100 tons per hectare or acre something. But really, the amount of, you know, the biochar use on that land significantly mitigate a lot of, you know, greenhouse gas emissions, which is really good because I think the global warming is real and climate change is happening. So biochar is really environmental friendly. So it will help us to protect our mother Earth and also the habitat.

Zachary Cartwright [00:10:27]:
Yeah. And if you help me find that article, we'd be happy to link it to this podcast description for our listeners. So overall, I think the takeaway here is that it is actually possible to take something that's unwanted or a weedy plant species and turn it into something that may have a lot of benefits to certain industry. Are there any other plant species that you're looking at or that you're aware of that other scientists are currently researching that might have similar potential?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:10:54]:
Yeah, actually there are like several species because biochar is just made from plant biomass, right? I mean, any living organic material can be used as a biochar. For example, in my study, I consider eastern red cedar. But there are several other studies which uses the bay char made from swiss grass or corn feedstock, or like giant reed or even bamboo or water hyacinth and salced cedar. And maybe other invasive species, like I think kuzu or something is like a vine. So, yeah, there are like many tree species or plant species that we can consider for making biochar and Pratiksha.

Zachary Cartwright [00:11:41]:
What music recommendation did you bring with you today for our listeners?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:11:45]:
There is a song called one love. So I like this song, the day that I heard this song, because it's kind of r and b music, and since my childhood, I like this song. So this song always remain in my heart. So I recommend one love by blue.

Zachary Cartwright [00:12:06]:
Thank you for that. And we'll add a link to that song as well. And what mantra or what saying did you bring with you today?

Pratiksya Silwal [00:12:13]:
So actually it may sound that like I am being super optimistic, but that's what I am. So the mantra that I always take is, whatever happens, happens for the best. Though at the current moment, that thing may not be best, it might be worse. But I think if I go back and see that those things, then I think that happens for good. Right? So whatever happens for the best. Another thing is also, I feel like everything will work out for me. Even it's not working out for me. I feel like someday, you know, everything will work out for me.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:12:51]:
And so, yeah, those are the mantra that always keep, that motivates me.

Zachary Cartwright [00:12:57]:
Yeah, things aren't always a linear path, but I really appreciate your optimism and hopefully that spreads to our listener and listeners and they can be optimistic today as well. Pachiksa, I really appreciate your time today. This is kind of a different topic for us, but I think your insights, your research is really interesting and thank you so much for coming onto the drip and sharing that knowledge with us.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:13:21]:
Yeah, thank you so much for having me, for giving me this opportunity to talk at least a little bit about my research, and it's kind of fun also. And I really find this podcast informative because I have seen people from diverse background come here and share their experience about the research or anything that is related with them. So it's really, you know, good to hear those podcasts, and I find it very informative also.

Zachary Cartwright [00:13:51]:
Well, I'm happy to have a platform where I can invite scientists of all types from everywhere and to talk about what they work on and what brings them balance and also what music they like. So thank you again for being here, and we appreciate your time.

Pratiksya Silwal [00:14:06]:
Thanks so much.

Zachary Cartwright [00:14:10]:
Today's episode is sponsored by AQUALAB. In this episode, we discuss biochar and its potential in potting soil. Did you know that there are also important mutualistic microorganisms in biochar that can be transferred to the soil with it? An article in the Journal of microbial and Biochemical Technology used an AQUALAB device to show how water activity plays a key role in the survival of one of these microorganisms called rhizobium trapezii. A link to the article will be in the podcast description.

Zachary Cartwright [00:14:44]:
This episode song is brought to us by my friend Christian, who performs under the name McNasty. This song is called Midnight thoughts and.

Zachary Cartwright [00:14:52]:
Is a pretty chill house track.

Zachary Cartwright [00:14:54]:
Let's give it a listen together.

Zachary Cartwright [00:15:46]:
To round out this episode, I'll be offering another mantra. This episode's mantra is I attract loving relationships to my life. I'm going to repeat this three times and maybe you, the listener, can say this to yourself or maybe even out loud today. Here we go. I attract loving relationships to my life. I attract loving relationships to my life. I attract loving relationships to my life. As you keep this mantra in mind, I also challenge you to think about which relationships in your life you consider to be the most loving or the most rewarding, and how can you nurture or take better care of those specific relationships? Thank you so much for listening to this episode.

Zachary Cartwright [00:16:39]:
My name is Zachary Cartwright and this has been the drip brought to you by AQUALAB. Stay hydrated and see you next time.