Sustained Biochar Production ten and now

[arclein]

I cannot help but think that the methods used to produce the black
soils must be self sustaining and indigenous to the farm itself. I
also see the use of fairly large pieces of charcoal that will be
difficult to pulverize properly. Remember that grinding has a natural
sizing limit, past which a great deal of effort is needed.

Without question the use of corn stover to build natural earthen kilns
is a great solution when we are relying on hand labor alone.

See:http://globalwarming-arclein.blogspot.com/2007/07/carbonizing-corn-
in-field.html

We also can conclude that corn stover is the best available source of
large volume biochar. It needs to be central to any program simply to
ensure 100% coverage of the fields with sufficient biochar.

Is there a way to do this in the field with equipment?

Let us return first to best hand practice. From there we can speculate
on how this can be made easier with power equipment.

We do not know how the Indians in the Amazon did this but we certainly
know how they grew corn everywhere else.

In North America, they used a trinary system.

That meant that they cleared a seed hill, likely two plus feet across,
perhaps slightly raised, in which they planted several corn seeds and
also several beans. These hills would have been at least two feet
apart. this means that twenty five percent of the land was been
cropped in this way. They also planted every few hills a few
pumpkins. This provided ground cover for the seventy five percent of
the land not been directly cropped.

An interesting experiment would be to now grow alfalfa in between the
hills in order to fix nitrogen and provide a late fall crop. It
unfortunately would likely take too much water.

This Indian system is ideal for hand work and for the production of
terra preta by hand.

In September,after the corn,beans, and pumpkins are picked, it is time
to remove the drying corn stover and bean waste. The pumpkin waste
will be trampled into the ground fairly easily by now.

Hand pulling the stalks from one seed hill gives you a nice bundle to
carry off the field to where a earthen beehive is built for the
production of Terra preta.

How do we accomplish the same result with the use equipment is a
difficult question. Using a stone boat or wagon is obvious. A
hydraulic grabber of some sort to pull the bunch associated with a
hill would be very helpful. Tying the bundles would also be helpful.

This would allow two workers to clear a larger field quite handily.

After the earthen field stack is set up, the rest is fairly simple. A
wagon full of biochar is taken to the field and each hill is
replenished with biochar before planting. Still a lot of labor but
much easier than the most basic system.

To do this with row agriculture will mean the creation of some fairly
complex lifting and baling machinery. At least we are on the right
track.

[Mel Landers]

Hey Daniel,

 

Why don't you pay a visit to a local Agricultural Equipment Engineer and run this stuff by him. He may want to develop some equipment that he could patent for the mechnized production of biocharr. Once you demonstrate the value of dark earth soils on your own farm maybe it will catch on. You may want to colaborate with the local extension agent, who could vouge for the methodology you use.

 

I remember my great frustration in trying to convince my neighbors that they should not till their soil. They told me to my face that I was crazy or just downright stupid. Now, the majority of them use reduced or no till. Of course, that is because the message came to them through a reliable source; the University of Missouri. I had no letters behind my name.

 

Maybe the pyrolisis could be sped up so that as you are adding corn roots to a mobile retort, there is always biocharr flowing out of the system. You would of course, have to leave some in the shute from the last batch and let the system get started with fresh roots before noving the equipment over the field. That way you could make one pass. Trucks could deliver organic garbage to an old combine driving along side. The garbage would be delivered into furrows in the ground, along with the newly formed biochar. For good measure you couls also add some finely broken fired clay shards!

 

Sound too complicated? It sounds absolutely insane to me.

But then, I know what your soil would be like come next Spring!

 

mel

arclein <arc...@gmail.com> wrote:

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