General recommendations

Naked Biochar acts like a powerful “sponge” for water (Naked Biochar holds 4 times its volume in water), nutrients and odours.

It is intended for use in composting, worm farming and in the formulation of potting mixes/fertiliser blends from manures and compost teas (contact CHARMAN for details on an excellent method to brew a tea).

Naked Biochar should not be applied directly to plants without pre- conditioning, otherwise it will soak up nutrients and suppress microbial activity, which may inhibit plant growth.

The greatest benefits will be seen when the product is used in food waste composts/worm farms, potting mixes, manure based fertilisers, sandy soils and heavy clay soils.

Naked Biochar is not a fertiliser, so you must continue to fertilise as per usual, at least initially. You should find that over time less fertiliser will be required by your plants, because nutrients will be better retained in soils that have been improved by the addition of Naked Biochar.

If you make your composts using the “greens and browns” approach, biochar can be considered as a “brown”, to balance against nutrient rich “greens”. Naked Biochar may be added as a 2-3mm layer before the addition of fresh green matter or food scraps and mixed in.

Alternatively directly mix two handfuls of biochar into every two litre container bucket of food scraps before addition to the compost or worm farm. This can be done in the kitchen to reduce scrap bucket odours.

Naked Biochar will greatly reduce the odours released by poultry litter products, animal manures, fish/seaweed products and blood and bone products and increase nutrient retention. The mix ratio should be adjusted to achieve the necessary odour reduction.

As a starting point blend 1 part biochar to 4 parts manure/fertiliser product, and leave to act for a minimum of an hour. If the mixture is dusty it is important to mix in just enough moisture to eliminate the dust.

For liquid products 3 parts biochar to 1 part of liquid should yield a solid material with improved handling and nutrient retention properties. Add more biochar if the odour is still unacceptable.

Naked Biochar should be pre-conditioned before adding to seed raising and potting mixes.

Pre-conditioning is best done by applying 1 part worm juice, manure tea or compost tea (contact CHARMAN for details on how to make), or mature humus compost to the biochar, then mix well and let stand for at least 24 hours. Commercial Microbial innoculants are also good way to precondition biochar for use in soil.

When potting, blend 2-4 litres of preconditioned biochar with every 10 litres of potting mix, to make a carbon rich “super mix”.

Blend 1 litre of pre-conditioned biochar into each 5-10 litres of seed raising mixture. Can be used to displace the perlite, vermiculite and/or coir fibre in most seed raising applications.

Naked Biochar is essentially dust free and sterile when packed, however dust can be generated if the product or spillages are allowed to dry out. Avoid inhaling the product or contact with eyes or mouth. Wash your hands after use.

For a material safety datasheet please contact CHARMAN.