Biochar: the secret to improving soil health.
Biochar: The secret to improving soil health. A fertilizer converting organic waste to help cut manure emissions. It is a stable, carbon-rich solid produced by heating biomass in a low-oxygen environment (pyrolysis) at temperatures typically between 300–700 °C. The resulting charred material is highly porous and resists microbial degradation, meaning that once applied to soil, it can persist—and lock up carbon—for decades or even centuries.
Growing Healthy Soils, and Remediating Contaminants
Biochar helps cut manure emissions while converting organic waste into a stable, carbon-rich solid fertilizer produced by heating biomass in a low-oxygen environment (pyrolysis) at temperatures typically between 300–700 °C. The resulting charred material is highly porous and resists microbial degradation, meaning that once applied to soil, it can persist—and lock up carbon—for decades or even centuries.
Biochar stands at the intersection of regenerative agriculture, carbon management, and environmental remediation. By harnessing its porous structure, nutrient retention prowess, and contaminant-adsorbing capabilities, farmers and gardeners can cultivate more productive, resilient soils while contributing to global carbon sequestration efforts—and now, even counteracting the trace-metal fallout from cloud-seeding operations.
Whether you manage a backyard garden or operate large-scale farmland, consider giving biochar a try—and watch your soil—and the planet—thank you.
Cody Innovative Greenhouse is Breaking Ground
Cody Geothermal Greenhouse Is Breaking New Ground.
Cody residents Karl and Lynn Lampe have designed their own geothermal greenhouse with Alpine Botanica owner Michael Poulsen. The greenhouse will use the earth’s internal thermostat to allow them to grow tropical fruits year-round in Wyoming. The couple believe their greenhouse features a revolutionary design. A geothermal greenhouse is a partially subterranean structure that relies on the natural heat of the earth to heat and cool what’s growing inside. Geothermal energy that radiates from the ground cools the greenhouse in the summer and keeps it warm in the winter. Although the top layer of soil freezes up during Wyoming winters, the ground temperature 10-12 feet below the surface is typically closer to around 50 degrees.
At that depth, Lampe’s greenhouse will have energy transfer tubes placed to allow warmer air to rise into the greenhouse.
Writer: Leo Wolfson for Cowboy State Daily, October 29, 2023