Alleviating vanadium-induced stress on rice growth using phosphorus-loaded biochar

The current investigation aimed at evaluating the impact of as-is biochar (BC) and phosphorous (P)-loaded biochar (PBC) (3%) on the growth and biochemical characteristics of rice under exposure to vanadium (V) (60 mg L-1). The results indicate that rice plants exposed to V-only treatment experienced a decline in growth parameters. Conversely, the inclusion of BC and PBC caused a noteworthy increase in physiological traits. PBC performed well in stress environments, specifically, shoot and root fresh weight increased by 82.86 and 53.33%, respectively, when compared to V-only treatment. Additionally, the SPAD chlorophyll of the shoot increased by 13.05% than V-amended plants. Moreover, the antioxidant enzyme traits of plant shoot and root, such as superoxide dismutase (SOD by 56.11&117.35%), catalase (CAT by 34.19&35.77%), and peroxidase (POD 25.90&18.74%), exhibited significant increases when compared to V-only amended plants, respectively. These findings strongly suggest that the application of BC and PBC can trigger biochemical pathways that facilitate biomass accumulation in meristematic cells. However, further investigations are required to elucidate the underlying mechanisms responsible for this growth promotion.