Biochar FAQ: Everything Missouri Farmers & Buyers Need to Know | Terra Char®

Everything you need to know about biochar — what it is, how it works, how to apply it, and why Terra Char® is Missouri's trusted bulk supplier. Updated from our original research archive.

General Information

What is Biochar?

Biochar is organic matter (crop waste, sawdust, or manure) cooked at a low temperature (500–900°C) with very little oxygen. This process, called pyrolysis, also produces heat, syngas, bio-oil, and wood vinegar. Energy released to make biochar can heat a building, power a truck, or generate electric power.

Biochar is not a fertilizer. It is used with fertilizer and amendments — not as a substitute — but as a high-efficiency delivery system. Biochar adsorbs and stores nutrients in fertilizers to make them easily available to plant roots. This improves fertilizer efficiency and allows growers to reduce fertilizer use. Biochar also retains up to six times its weight in water, so it can be thought of as a battery that stores water and nutrients.

Why use biochar in soil?

Biochar replenishes soils depleted by over-farming, improves soil structure, reduces run-off, retains nutrients and water in micropores, reduces erosion and leaching, stabilizes soil pH, helps roots absorb nutrients, stores and releases nitrogen and phosphorus, accelerates the compost process, reduces greenhouse gas emissions, absorbs odors from manure and compost, reduces aluminum toxicity, supports beneficial microbes, encourages earthworm populations, and increases mycorrhizal fungi activity.

Is Biochar just charcoal?

In spite of many similarities, biochar is not just charcoal. According to the International Biochar Initiative: "Biochar is a solid material obtained from the thermochemical conversion of biomass in an oxygen-limited environment. Biochar can be used as a product itself or as an ingredient within a blended product, with a range of applications as an agent for soil improvement, improved resource use efficiency, remediation and/or protection against particular environmental pollution, and as an avenue for greenhouse gas (GHG) mitigation." Charcoal is not produced to meet any of these requirements. Biochar is produced to meet them all.

Is Biochar safe?

For all practical purposes, biochar is as safe as soil itself. It is non-toxic and safe to handle. Terra Char® biochar is certifiable for soil use under USDA NOP Certified Organic.

What is "Carbon Smart"?

Being Carbon Smart means taking an intelligent and flexible approach to reducing your carbon footprint. Biochar is Carbon negative — its ability to sequester carbon from the atmosphere and trap it in the soil where it does good rather than harm makes it one of the most powerful carbon management tools available to farmers today.

How Biochar is Made and How It Works

How is Biochar made?

Biochar is produced through pyrolysis — the heating of organic material in the absence of oxygen. There are two main processes: pyrolysis and gasification. Energy products in the form of gas or oil are produced along with the biochar and may be recovered for another use or burned as heat. Biochar can be made from a wide variety of biomass feedstocks and at scales ranging from small household units to large bioenergy power plants.

How does Biochar benefit the soil?

First, biochar micropores are a super sponge — they soak up water and slowly release it back into soil, keeping it wetter longer and significantly expanding the soil's water cycle capacity. Second, biochar attracts and holds ions with electric charge. In soil, ions are nutrients. Biochar adsorbs nutrients and captures their electric charges, giving soil tremendous capacity to power plant growth. Third, biochar is habitat for microbes and fungi — allowing soil to become fully alive like a coral reef, blossoming the Soil Food Web.

How does Biochar affect pH and cation exchange capacity?

Biochar reduces soil acidity and decreases liming needs. Because it attracts and holds soil nutrients, it potentially reduces fertilizer requirements. Biochar retains nutrients in soil through the negative charge that develops on its surfaces, buffering acidity much as organic matter does. Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) is a measure of soil fertility — the capacity to hold plant nutrients like calcium, potassium, and magnesium. Adding biochar to clay or sandy soils typically raises CEC by 10, 20, or more points, dramatically improving a soil's ability to support and sustain growth.

Application Questions

How much biochar do I use?

Application rates vary by use case. For agriculture: typically 1–5 tons per acre, applied once and lasting for decades. For garden beds: 1–2 inches worked into the top 6–8 inches of soil. For compost: 10–20% by volume. For livestock bedding and feed applications: as directed by your veterinarian or agronomist. Contact Terra Char® at 573-489-8929 for a custom recommendation for your operation.

Do I just throw biochar on my dirt and wait?

Not quite. Biochar is not a miracle fertilizer — it is meant to be used in conjunction with fertilizer or other soil amendments. Due to the sponge-like qualities of its micropores, raw biochar in soil may actually impede growth initially if not properly charged. Terra Char® strongly recommends loading up or inoculating your biochar prior to soil application using the 4M's Protocol: Moisten, Micronize, Mineral Charge, Microbe Inoculate.

How long does biochar last in soil?

Biochar is extraordinarily stable. Studies show it persists for hundreds to thousands of years — unlike compost, which breaks down within a few seasons. This means you apply it once and it keeps working. After a few annual applications to reach an ideal concentration of at least 5% in soil, only occasional, small additions are required.

Livestock and Poultry Applications

Biochar is increasingly used in livestock and poultry operations. Key benefits include: used on litter to reduce odor and harmful effects of ammonia; water treatment for animals and fish farming; reduces odor in livestock manure collection and accelerates fermentation. Research shows that adding biochar to cattle feed can improve feed efficiency 22%, reduce methane 28%, and increase daily weight gain 20%. Biochar has also been shown to significantly reduce aflatoxins in goat's milk. Note: Biochar has not been approved as a feed supplement in the U.S. — consult your veterinarian.

Climate and Environmental Impact

Can biochar mitigate climate change?

Studies have shown that biochar has the potential to mitigate global climate change by drawing down atmospheric greenhouse gas concentrations. NOAA climate scientist Dr. James Hansen has written: "Biochar produced in pyrolysis of crop residues, forestry wastes and animal manures can restore soil fertility while storing carbon for centuries to millennia. Biochar helps soil retain nutrients and fertilizers, reduce greenhouse gas emissions such as N2O. Replacing slash-and-burn agriculture with slash-and-char using farm and forestry wastes can provide CO2 drawdown of ~8 ppm or more in 50 years."

In addition to carbon sequestration, biochar stimulates plant growth (increasing CO2 consumption), reduces need for chemical fertilizers (reducing manufacturing emissions), increases microbial soil life (increasing carbon stored in soil), and converts agricultural waste into stable carbon rather than letting it decompose or burn.

Why Terra Char®?

Terra Char® is headquartered in Columbia, Missouri — the heart of the state's agricultural corridor. We supply bulk biochar from semi-loads (20 tons) to multi-load volumes (500+ tons) across Missouri and throughout our 8-state territory: MO, AR, TN, TX, LA, MS, FL, and GA. Our biochar aligns with USDA NRCS Soil Carbon Amendment Practice Standard 336, making it eligible for EQIP cost-share funding. We are associated with Carbon Veterans, a Service-Disabled Veteran-Owned Small Business (SDVOSB).

Have a question not answered here? Call Phil Blom, CEO, directly at 573-489-8929 or email terracharinfo@gmail.com.