How to Inoculate / Activate Biochar | Turning Charcoal into Biochar

Today on the smallholding I am showing you how to turn charcoal into biochar by inoculating / activating the biochar to create a great soil amendment for the no dig garden.
To create active biochar, I will be processing the charcoal by grinding and crushing it and then sieving it down to a finer grade so that there are no big lumps to interfere with seed sowing in the no dig vegetable garden.
#SmallholdingUk #NoDig #Smallholding #SelfSufficiency #Homesteading #Smallfarming #Growyourown #Planting #Sowing #Vegetables #Softfruits #Fruit #Biochar

[@sowgroweat6987]

Something else to add to my "to do" list. Lovely educational video thanks. I need to now go back and watch your biochar video 🙂

[@SmallholdingUK]

Thank you, biochar is another one of those really interesting things I’ve wanted to do ticked off my list 😆

[@haram2163]

I wtached a vid a couple of years back where they put the innoculated char into their potting mix. Makes a lot of sense as you can concentrate a limited amount of char at the plant rather than trying to cover every bed. Making char and compost for 26 beds is a lot of work. I think folk use urine to charge their char as it is considered the fastest method. 2 weeks in urine and you are good to add to the ground.

[@SmallholdingUK]

Yeah your right and I plan to add it to my potting and seed mixes next year, this year I hope should be the last year that I have ever brought a bag of compost I’m making between 12-16 cubic metres a year now and 1-2 of leaf mould so next year shall be very exciting times for me trying to find the perfect mixes

[@stephanealegoria7016]

Nice explanation. My advices focusing on sustainability : use the charcoal to hygienize the chicken coop, remove the need to clean it since charcoal capacity to absorb poop is amazing (largely underestimated, i do not have chicken deseases anymore). Transfer after a while in an old fridge and add urine and remaining liquids of cooking. Add some mineral dust if you live in the tropics with oxysoils. And make agroforesty to ensure the carbon availability and biodiversity above the ground . My point is social sustainability since labor reduction is key and using the charcoal to hygienize humanure and animal or vegetable remains was certainly the main drive in the black earth of amazon.

[@SmallholdingUK]

I have seen this where it’s used in the chicken run and I will definitely do it in future when I can produce enough charcoal It seems another good way of doing it as it will all end up in the garden to grow my vegetables

[@DJ-uk5mm]

I call it charcoal. And the after it’s inoculated I call it biochar. (Ie biologically activated charcoal) Great video thanks😊

[@SmallholdingUK]

Yeah I know but I forget things when I’m filming and it’s to much editing to change it 🤣 you knew what I meant though 😆👍 thanks for watching 😊

[@brianpearce661]

Really interesting video thanks

[@SmallholdingUK]

Thank you

[@Ok-Mardy]

What about adding it to your leaf mold and letting it set for a year or two maybe mixing it now and then?

[@SmallholdingUK]

Leaf mold is quite low in nutrients, I think the idea with putting it in compost or other nutrient dense things Is to really get the biochar fully charged

[@Ok-Mardy]

@@SmallholdingUK thanks for your quick response I really don't know that much about bio char but thought I read or heard that it housed microrizal fungi which we know is symbolic to plant nutrient up take thus leaf mold might in essence is like fungi but just my thoughts.Lol!

[@steveboz5641]

Would that not take away from your compost nutrients? Or am i missing something…

[@SmallholdingUK]

I don’t think so, I’m no expert but it is one of the recommended ways to use it

[@steveboz5641]

@@SmallholdingUK ok, thanks for the info, as i don’t have any livestock, i came to a stumbling point with charging the biochar.. (i put a stockpot with 2 holes at the bottom, inside a standard garden burner bin) its good but waste is quite high.

[@ms.ellaneous47]

Instead of molasses could I use brown sugar?

[@SmallholdingUK]

I’m sure it would be fine as it’s just to help feed the microbes 👍

[@ms.ellaneous47]

@@SmallholdingUK awesome !! Thank you ~!

[@Billbarker57]

As I understand it, the reasoning for using unsulphured molasses is that it has both the sugars that microbes use for energy and the micronutrients that those same bacteria need to grow up big and healthy. I know a generation for bacteria takes maybe 20 minutes, so a day without could cause shortages of some types or not because there are other sources of these micronutrients. I may try both out and see what I see.