This article has been accepted for publication and undergone full peer review but has not been through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi: 10.1002/jeq2.20111. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved. Can Char Carbon Enhance Soil Properties and Crop Yields in Low-Carbon Soils? Insights After Two Years Humberto Blanco-Canqui 1* , Michael Kaiser 1 , Gary W. Hergert 2 , Cody F. Creech 2 , Rex Nielsen 2 , Bijesh Maharjan 2 , Amanda C. Easterly 2 , and Nevin C. Lawrence 2 1 Dep. of Agronomy and Horticulture, Univ. of Nebraska-Lincoln, 1875 N. 38th Street, Lincoln, NE 68583. 2 Dep. of Agronomy and Horticulture, Univ. of Nebraska-Lincoln Panhandle Research and Extension Center, 4502 Avenue I, Scottsbluff, Nebraska 69361. *Corresponding author (hblanco2@unl.edu). Core Ideas  Application of Char (coal combustion residue) at 67 Mg ha -1 (19.7 Mg char-C ha -1 ) increased soil C concentration  Char application at 67 Mg ha -1 (19.7 Mg char-C ha -1 ) increased soil C stock in low C soils but not in a high C soil  Low rates (<67 Mg ha -1 ) of Char application did not affect soil C concentration and stocks  Char application increased sulfate, Ca, Mg, and Na concentrations but did not affect soil physical properties and crop yields Abstract Restoring soil carbon (C) lost due to intensive farming is a long-term endeavor under current conservation management practices. Application of coal combustion residue (293 g C kg -1 ) from a sugar beet (Beta vulgaris L.) processing factory, hereafter referred to as Char, could rapidly restore soil C and productivity in degraded croplands, but data on this potential strategy are unavailable. We assessed the impacts of Char application to two relatively low C soils (10.1 and 12.2 g C kg -1 ) and one relatively high C soil (17.3 g C kg -1 ) on soil C, soil physical and fertility properties, and crop yields in no-till systems in the Great Plains after 2 yr. Char was disked to 15 cm soil depth at Char-C