Supporting information Table S1 Characteristics of studies included in this meta-analysis. Reference Type of experiment Isotope type Biochar Pyrolysis temperature (°C) Experimen tal duration (days) Biochar decompos ed amount (%) Feedstock Pyrolysis type Maize silage Slow 600 57 1.8–2.7% Barley root Slow 225, 300, 375 113 2.1–9.2% Barley root Slow 400, 500, 600 413 Suagecane bagasse Suagecane trash Slow 350, 450, 550 14 0.6–1.3% 0.02– 1.3% Sydney blue gum Slow 450, 550 730 0.5– 10.7% Wheat straw Blue gum eucalypt Slow 450 74 0.2–0.3% Corn stover Slow 350, 550 510 Sydney blue gum Slow 450, 550 120 7–14% 0.4– 1.05% Ryegrass Slow 400 1181 3.9–4.5% Ryegrass Slow 400 3102 5.4–5.8% Corn straw Miscanthus giganteus Slow 500 30 2.3–3.0% Slow 350, 700 87 0.1–1.1% 13C Bamminger et al. (2014) Incubation Bruun et al. (2008) Incubation Bruun et al. (2014) Incubation Cross & Sohi (2011) Incubation natural abundance 14 C-labelled biochar 14 C-labelled biochar 13C natural abundance 13C-depleted Fang et al. (2014) Incubation Farrell et al. (2013) Incubation biochar 13C-enriched biochar 13C Hearth et al. (2014) Incubation Keith et al. (2011) Kuzyakov et al. (2009) Kuzyakov et al. (2014) Incubation Lu et al. (2014) Incubation Luo et al. (2011) Incubation Incubation Incubation natural abundance 13C-depleted biochar 14C-labelled biochar 14C-labelled biochar 13C natural abundance 13C natural abundance Maestrini et al. (2014b) Maestrini et al. (2014a) 13 Incubation Field Major et al. (2010) Malghani et al. (2013) Field Naisse et al. (2014) Incubation Incubation C-enriched biochar 13 C-enriched biochar 13 C natural abundance 13 C natural abundance 13 C natural abundance Ryegrass Slow 450 158 4.3–4.4% Pine Slow 450 365 0.3–0.5% Old mango tree Slow 400–600 730 2.2% Corn silage Slow 500 105 2.4–7.0% Maize silage Weathered Maize silage Fast 1200 222 0.6–1.4% Switchgrass Slow 475 189 1.1–2.1% Pine Slow 450 180 0.4–0.4% Sydney blue gum Sydney blue gum leaves Poultry litter Cow manure Papermill sludge Slow 400, 550 1829 0.6–8.9% Oak pellets Fast 550 699 0.8–8.8% Maize silage Slow 1200 164, 245 2.9–8.9% Rice straw Eastern gamma grass Fast 250, 350 112 2.1–2.8% Slow 250, 400, 650 505 0.4–5.5% 13 Nguyen et al. (2014) Incubation Santos et al. (2012) Incubation Singh et al. (2012) Incubation C natural abundance 13C-enriched biochar 13C natural abundance 13C Stewart et al. (2013) Incubation Ventura et al. (2014) Field Yin et al. (2014) Zimmerman et al. (2011) Incubation References Incubation natural abundance 13C natural abundance 13C-enriched biochar 13C natural abundance * indicates studies are used for the meta-analysis of biochar addition induced priming effect. *Bamminger C, Marschner B, Jüschke E (2014) An incubation study on the stability and biological effects of pyrogenic and hydrothermal biochar in two soils. European Journal of Soil Science, 65, 72–82. Bruun S, Clauson‐Kaas S, Bobuľská L, Thomsen IK (2014) Carbon dioxide emissions from biochar in soil: role of clay, microorganisms and carbonates. European Journal of Soil Science, 65, 52–59. Bruun S, Jensen ES, Jensen LS (2008) Microbial mineralization and assimilation of black carbon: Dependency on degree of thermal alteration. Organic Geochemistry, 39, 839–845. *Cross A, Sohi SP (2011) The priming potential of biochar products in relation to labile carbon contents and soil organic matter status. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 43, 2127–2134. *Fang Y, Singh BP, Singh B (2014) Temperature sensitivity of biochar and native carbon mineralisation in biochar-amended soils. Agriculture, Ecosystems & Environment, 191, 158–167. *Farrell M, Kuhn TK, Macdonald LM et al. (2013) Microbial utilisation of biochar-derived carbon. Science of the Total Environment, 465, 288–297. *Herath HMSK, Camps-Arbestain M, Hedley MJ, Kirschbaum MUF, Wang T, van Hale R (2014) Experimental evidence for sequestering C with biochar by avoidance of CO2 emissions from original feedstock and protection of native soil organic matter. GCB Bioenergy. doi: 10.1111/gcbb.12183 *Jones DL, Murphy DV, Khalid M, Ahmad W, Edwards-Jones G, DeLuca TH (2011) Short-term biochar-induced increase in soil CO2 release is both biotically and abiotically mediated. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 43, 1723–1731. *Keith A, Singh B, Singh BP (2011) Interactive priming of biochar and labile organic matter mineralization in a smectite-rich soil. Environmental Science & Technology, 45, 9611–9618. Kuzyakov Y, Bogomolova I, Glaser B (2014) Biochar stability in soil: Decomposition during eight years and transformation as assessed by compound-specific 14C analysis. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 70, 229–236. *Kuzyakov Y, Subbotina I, Chen H, Bogomolova I, Xu X (2009) Black carbon decomposition and incorporation into soil microbial biomass estimated by 14C labeling. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 41, 210–219. *Lu W, Ding W, Zhang J, Li Y, Luo J, Bolan N, Xie Z (2014) Biochar suppressed the decomposition of organic carbon in a cultivated sandy loam soil: A negative priming effect. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 76, 12–21. *Luo Y, Durenkamp M, De Nobili M, Lin Q, Brookes PC (2011) Short term soil priming effects and the mineralisation of biochar following its incorporation to soils of different pH. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 43, 2304–2314. *Maestrini B, Herrmann AM, Nannipieri P, Schmidt MW, Abiven S (2014a) Ryegrass-derived pyrogenic organic matter changes organic carbon and nitrogen mineralization in a temperate forest soil. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 69, 291–301. Maestrini B, Abiven S, Singh N, Bird J, Torn MS, Schmidt MWI (2014b) Carbon losses from pyrolysed and original wood in a forest soil under natural and increased N deposition. Biogeosciences, 11, 5199–5213. *Major J, Lehmann J, Rondon M, Goodale C (2010) Fate of soil-applied black carbon: downward migration, leaching and soil respiration. Global Change Biology, 16, 1366–1379. *Malghani S, Gleixner G, Trumbore SE (2013) Chars produced by slow pyrolysis and hydrothermal carbonization vary in carbon sequestration potential and greenhouse gases emissions. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 62, 137–146. *Naisse C, Girardin C, Lefevre R, Pozzi A, Maas R, Stark A, Rumpel C (2014) Effect of physical weathering on the carbon sequestration potential of biochars and hydrochars in soil. GCB Bioenergy. doi: 10.1111/gcbb.12158. *Nguyen BT, Koide RT, Dell C, Drohan P, Skinner H, Adler PR, Nord A (2014) Turnover of soil carbon following addition of switchgrass-derived biochar to four soils. Soil Science Society of America Journal, 78, 531–537. *Santos F, Torn MS, Bird JA (2012) Biological degradation of pyrogenic organic matter in temperate forest soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 51, 115–124. *Singh BP, Cowie AL, Smernik RJ (2012) Biochar carbon stability in a clayey soil as a function of feedstock and pyrolysis temperature. Environmental Science & Technology, 46, 11770–11778. *Stewart CE, Zheng J, Botte J, Cotrufo MF (2013) Co-generated fast pyrolysis biochar mitigates greenhouse gas emissions and increases carbon sequestration in temperate soils. GCB Bioenergy, 5, 153–164. *Ventura M, Alberti G, Viger M et al. (2014) Biochar mineralization and priming effect on SOM decomposition in two European short rotation coppices. GCB Bioenergy. doi: 10.1111/gcbb.12219. *Yin YF, He XH, Gao R, Ma HL, Yang YS (2014) Effects of rice straw and its biochar addition on soil labile carbon and soil organic carbon. Journal of Integrative Agriculture, 13, 491–498. *Zimmerman AR, Gao B, Ahn MY (2011) Positive and negative carbon mineralization priming effects among a variety of biocharamended soils. Soil Biology and Biochemistry, 43, 1169–1179.