The Power of Stacking Biostimulants

In the ever-evolving world of agriculture, farmers are continually seeking ways to enhance crop yields, improve plant health, and maximize the quality of their produce. One of the most promising strategies in recent years has been the use of biostimulants—natural products that enhance plant growth and resilience. But there’s an emerging trend that takes this concept even further: stacking biostimulant products. By combining different types of biostimulants, farmers can achieve results which surpass those that any single product could offer on its own. A recent micro-trial, carried out on potatoes by Agrology Ltd, highlights just how powerful this approach can be.

The Micro-Trial: A Closer Look

The trial involved several treatments applied to potato crops, using a variety of biostimulant products both individually and in combination. The products tested included seaweed granules mixed into the soil, seaweed extract used as a tuber treatment, microbial in-furrow sprays, and seaweed foliar sprays. Each treatment was carefully applied to different sets of potato plants, and the results were measured to assess the impact on crop yield and quality.

What became clear from the trial is that the stacking of these biostimulants—using them in various combinations rather than in isolation—produced significantly better outcomes for the potatoes.

Why Stacking Works

Stacking biostimulants works by leveraging the complementary effects of different products, each targeting a unique aspect of plant health. Seaweed extracts, for instance, are rich in hormones and nutrients that stimulate root growth and improve stress tolerance. When used as a tuber treatment, they help the young potato plants establish more robust root systems early in their growth cycle.

Microbial products, on the other hand, enhance soil health by promoting beneficial microbial activity, which in turn improves nutrient availability and uptake. When applied in-furrow they ensure that the developing potato roots have immediate access to a thriving microbial community, enhancing their ability to absorb essential nutrients.

Seaweed granules, when mixed into the soil, slowly release their beneficial compounds, providing a steady supply of nutrients and growth-promoting substances throughout the growing season. This steady release ensures that the plants do not experience nutrient spikes, which can lead to imbalances and suboptimal growth.

Finally, seaweed foliar sprays offer a direct way to deliver essential nutrients and stress-relief compounds to the potato plants during critical growth stages. Regular foliar applications allows for rapid uptake, particularly during periods of high stress, such as hot and dry weather conditions or pest attacks.

The Results Speak for Themselves

The micro-trial revealed that while each of these treatments provided benefits when used individually, the most impressive results came from combining them. The stacking of seaweed granules with microbial in-furrow spray and seaweed foliar spray, for example, led to the highest yields and best overall plant health, showing an 81% increase. The potatoes from these treatments were larger, more uniform, and had fewer instances of disease compared to those treated with just one type of biostimulant.

This outcome underscores the value of a holistic approach to crop management. By using a combination of biostimulants, farmers can address multiple aspects of plant health simultaneously—improving root development, enhancing nutrient uptake, boosting stress resistance, and optimizing overall growth.

A Future-Forward Approach to Agriculture

As the agricultural industry continues to adapt to the challenges of climate change, soil degradation, and the need for sustainable practices, the stacking of biostimulant products represents a forward-thinking strategy. It not only helps in maximizing yields but also in producing healthier, more resilient crops with fewer chemical inputs. For potato farmers, in particular, the evidence from this micro-trial suggests that stacking biostimulants could be the key to unlocking the full potential of their crops.

Samantha Brown – Director – The Crop Smith Ltd.

Heat Stress Seaweed and Potatoes

Seaweed foliar spray is increasingly recognized as a valuable tool in sustainable agriculture, particularly in the cultivation of potatoes. This natural bio-stimulant is derived from various species of seaweed, such as Ascophyllum nodosum, and is rich in a complex mixture of nutrients, hormones, and bioactive compounds that collectively enhance plant growth and resilience. Understanding the scientific mechanisms behind the efficacy of seaweed foliar spray reveals why it has become an essential component in modern potato farming.

Nutrient Supply and Absorption

Seaweed is a rich source of essential nutrients, including nitrogen, potassium, phosphorus, and trace elements like zinc, copper, and magnesium. These nutrients are vital for the physiological processes in plants, such as photosynthesis, protein synthesis, and cell division. When applied as a foliar spray, seaweed delivers these nutrients directly to the leaves, bypassing the soil’s complex nutrient dynamics and allowing for faster and more efficient absorption. This direct nutrient uptake is particularly beneficial for potatoes, which have high nutrient demands during key growth stages, such as tuber initiation and bulking.

Hormonal Stimulation

One of the most significant benefits of seaweed foliar spray is its content of natural plant hormones, including cytokinins, auxins, and gibberellins. These hormones regulate various aspects of plant growth and development. Cytokinins, for example, promote cell division and shoot formation, leading to increased vegetative growth. Auxins play a crucial role in root development, enhancing the plant’s ability to absorb water and nutrients from the soil. Gibberellins stimulate stem elongation and seed germination, contributing to the overall vigor of the plant. In potatoes, these hormonal effects translate into more robust plants with better-developed root systems, leading to higher tuber yields.

Enhanced Stress Resistance

Seaweed extracts contain compounds such as betaines, antioxidants, and polysaccharides that help plants cope with environmental stresses like drought, salinity, and temperature fluctuations. Betaines act as osmoprotectants, stabilizing the osmotic balance within plant cells under stress conditions. Antioxidants neutralize reactive oxygen species (ROS), which are harmful byproducts of stress that can damage cellular structures. Polysaccharides contribute to the plant’s immune response, enhancing resistance to pathogens. In potato crops, which are particularly susceptible to stress-related diseases and environmental challenges, these protective effects help maintain growth and productivity even under suboptimal conditions.

Microbial Interaction and Soil Health

Although seaweed foliar sprays are applied directly to the plant leaves, they can also positively impact soil health indirectly. Seaweed extracts contain organic compounds that can enhance the activity of beneficial soil microbes when they eventually wash off the plant and enter the soil. These microbes play crucial roles in nutrient cycling, organic matter decomposition, and the suppression of soil-borne pathogens. Healthier soil microbiomes contribute to better overall plant health, reinforcing the benefits of foliar applications.

Improved Crop Quality and Yield

The combined effects of nutrient enrichment, hormonal stimulation, stress resistance, and enhanced soil health lead to significant improvements in crop quality and yield. For potato farmers, this means more uniform tubers, increased size and weight, and a higher overall yield. Additionally, potatoes treated with seaweed foliar sprays often show improved storage qualities, with reduced incidence of diseases like soft rot during storage.

Overall, the use of seaweed foliar spray in potato farming is supported by a robust body of scientific evidence that highlights its multifaceted benefits. By providing essential nutrients, stimulating growth hormones, enhancing stress resistance, and fostering beneficial soil microbes, seaweed foliar spray not only supports the development of healthier, more productive potato plants but also contributes to more sustainable and resilient agricultural practices.

Samantha Brown – Director – The Crop Smith Ltd.

­Fertiliser Industry and the Suppression of Natural Crop Inputs

The global fertiliser industry is a behemoth, valued at approximately $200 billion as of 2021. This industry, with its significant economic reach and influence, has played an indispensable role in shaping modern agriculture. However, it also stands accused of suppressing the use of alternatives, particularly natural crop inputs such as seaweed extracts. This article investigates these allegations and the complex dynamics at play.

Synthetic Fertilisers and Modern Agriculture

Since the invention of the Haber-Bosch process in the early 20th century, synthetic fertilisers, mainly composed of nitrogen, phosphorus, and potassium, have revolutionized agriculture. Their widespread use has undeniably contributed to the dramatic increase in crop yields, providing food for an ever-growing global population.

Yet, alongside the benefits, there have been significant drawbacks. Overreliance on synthetic fertilisers has led to detrimental environmental impacts, including water pollution, soil degradation, and contribution to greenhouse gas emissions. There is a growing consensus that more sustainable methods of agriculture need to be explored and implemented. This is where alternatives such as seaweed extracts and other natural crop inputs come into the picture.

Seaweed Extracts and Other Natural Crop Inputs

Seaweed extracts, compost, green manure, and other naturally derived materials can enrich soils and boost plant growth. They provide a wide range of essential micronutrients, enhance soil structure, improve water-holding capacity, and promote the beneficial microbial activity that is vital for healthy soil ecosystems.

Seaweed, in particular, has shown significant promise as a natural fertiliser. Its extracts have been found to stimulate plant growth, enhance resistance to pests and diseases, and even increase tolerance to environmental stresses, like drought and salinity.

The Suppression Allegations

Despite the potential benefits of natural fertilisers, their adoption has been slow. Critics argue that the fertiliser industry, to protect its market share, has played a role in suppressing these alternatives.

The industry’s alleged tactics include extensive lobbying, funding research biased towards synthetic fertilisers, and engaging in aggressive marketing campaigns promoting synthetic over organic inputs.

Moreover, it is suggested that the fertiliser industry has influenced agricultural policies and subsidies that favour synthetic fertilisers, making it financially challenging for farmers to switch to natural alternatives. Critics point to the lack of subsidies or support programs for natural fertilisers as a glaring example of this imbalance.

The Industry’s Perspective

On the other side, the fertiliser industry contends that their products are essential for meeting global food demands. They assert that synthetic fertilisers’ effectiveness, scalability, and consistency outperform natural alternatives.

The industry also maintains that it supports research and development of more environmentally friendly fertilisers and practices, as evidenced by the emergence of precision agriculture and slow-release fertilisers.

Conclusion

There is a pressing need to balance the quest for sustainable agriculture with the necessity of feeding a growing global population. While allegations of the fertiliser industry’s suppression of natural crop inputs are concerning, they reflect a broader issue within the global agricultural system. A shift in policy, research, and funding is required to explore and promote more sustainable farming practices effectively.

The key to future success lies in a multi-faceted approach that integrates the best of both synthetic and natural fertilisers, supported by impartial research and equitable agricultural policies. Without a doubt, achieving this bal

ance will demand an unprecedented level of cooperation and transparency among all stakeholders, including the fertiliser industry, farmers, researchers, policymakers, and consumers

Samantha Brown – Director – The Crop Smith Ltd.

Seaweed Extract Increases Yield in Potatoes by 29%

Extreme weather events are becoming more commonplace. The use of seaweed extract minimises the damage caused by the worst of these extreme events – drought and heat stress.

In the UK the top 10 warmest years since 1884 have occurred in the last 2 decades.  The highest temperature ever recorded in the UK is 40.3°C, set in Lincolnshire on 19^th July last year, and on the same day 35°C was exceeded for the first time in Scotland.

Fig.1. Remember this? Extreme heat warnings were issued at multiple locations in July 2022.

Drought and heat stress are problematic in potato cultivation as modern varieties are adapted to grow at temperatures between 14⁰C and 22⁰C. Potato productivity is reduced at higher temperatures, typically whenever temperatures exceed 25⁰C during the day.

Excess heat inhibits tuberisation, causes secondary tuberisation, decreases the rate of photosynthesis and inhibits biomass accumulation. In addition, heat stress increases physiological defects in tubers such as early skin set which is often followed by skin cracking and a loss of tuber quality. The earlier a heat wave occurs, and the longer it lasts, the more negative its impact.

Potato plants under abiotic stress conditions suffer a disturbance in normal hormonal regulation, plant metabolism and photosynthesis. Reactive oxygen species (ROS) are produced and these cause membrane damage and cell death. As a consequence the movement of assimilates from the leaves to the developing tubers is disrupted.

However, there are natural technologies which can minimise these losses to heat stress.

High quality seaweed extract is a natural, organic biostimulant which is high in antioxidants, vitamins and minerals which improve heat and drought tolerance by reducing the tissue damage caused by ROS. Foliar applications of seaweed extract directly counter the effects of abiotic stress as it contains a high level of betaine, which is a bioactive compound that plays an important role in osmoregulation.  In addition to betaine, seaweed extract is high in a range of phytohormones which have all been shown to play critical roles in the response of plants to heat stress.

But, of course, the proof of the pudding is in the eating….

2022 Lincolnshire Potato Trials

During 2022 independent, scientific trials were conducted in maincrop potato cv. ‘Melody’. The treatment consisted of a simple programme of an in-furrow application of a high-quality seaweed extract, CS1, followed by 6 low volume foliar sprays of the same product at regular intervals throughout the growing season.

During the 2022 growing season the UK experienced 3 heat waves, one in each month of June, July and August, which were crucial tuber formation and bulking periods for this crop. The impact of the prolonged heat stress was minimised in the treated plants and the results demonstrated a yield increase that was significant and considerable at 29.2%, equivalent to an extra 15 tonnes per hectare.

Fig. 2. 29.2% Yield increase in Solanum tuberosum ‘Melody’ as a result of CS1 seaweed extract application.

These results confirm that seaweed based biostimulants can reduce potato yield losses to abiotic stress. Instead of shutting down and going into protection mode, the potato plant is able to continue accumulating biomass despite heat stress conditions.

Excess heat is a devastating abiotic stress that causes substantial crop losses around the world. The frequency and magnitude of heat stress episodes are being intensified due to global climate change and we need to adapt. Understanding and implementing effective methods to mitigate abiotic stress is now a priority for farmers and growers across the UK.

Samantha Brown, Technical Director, The Crop Smith Ltd.

Seaweed Extract in Agriculture since the WW2 

Its only since the end of the II World war we have been told that nitrogen and other chemical inputs are essential for effective agricultural farming. It has become clear that this is not necessarily true and comes with a cost to the environment. Throughout human history, nature has been an invaluable source of knowledge and sustenance. Among the treasures it offers, seaweed has played a vital role in various aspects of our lives. From being a nutritious food source to an effective fertilizer, seaweed has proven its worth. In particular, the use of seaweed extract in agriculture has been a consistent practice over millennia, benefiting crops and ecosystems alike. This article explores the enduring relationship between seaweed extract and agriculture, highlighting its rich history and numerous advantages.

Historical Origins

The utilization of seaweed in agriculture can be traced back thousands of years. Ancient civilizations, such as the Chinese, Japanese, and Celtic cultures, recognized its inherent value. They understood that the minerals, trace elements, and growth hormones present in seaweed offered tremendous benefits to crops. Seaweed was harvested, dried, and ground into a fine powder or fermented to create nutrient-rich extracts. These extracts were then applied to fields, providing plants with essential nutrients and promoting their growth and resilience.

Nutritional Benefits

Seaweed extract, derived from various species such as kelp, dulse, and bladderwrack, is rich in minerals, including potassium, calcium, magnesium, and iron. These nutrients are essential for plant development and play a vital role in various physiological processes. Additionally, seaweed extract contains natural growth regulators such as auxins, cytokinins, and gibberellins, which stimulate root growth, enhance nutrient absorption, and promote overall plant vigor. By supplying plants with these vital components, seaweed extract helps improve crop yields, enhance plant health, and increase resistance to stressors such as drought, diseases, and pests.

Environmental Sustainability

One of the most significant advantages of using seaweed extract in agriculture is its positive impact on the environment. Seaweeds are fast-growing marine plants that require no freshwater, fertilizers, or pesticides to thrive. Their cultivation is non-invasive and does not compete with traditional agricultural practices. Moreover, seaweed absorbs and sequesters significant amounts of carbon dioxide, reducing greenhouse gas emissions. By incorporating seaweed extract into farming practices, we can minimize the environmental footprint of agriculture while promoting sustainable and eco-friendly methods of cultivation.

Modern Applications

In recent times, the use of seaweed extract in agriculture has gained renewed interest. Researchers and farmers are exploring innovative techniques to harness its benefits. Seaweed extracts are commercially available in various forms, including liquid concentrates and powdered formulations. These products are easily applied to crops via foliar sprays, root drenches, or seed treatments. Moreover, advancements in seaweed farming techniques, such as integrated multi-trophic aquaculture, allow for sustainable cultivation and harvesting, ensuring a consistent supply of seaweed extract for agricultural use.  But be aware all seaweed extracts are not the same.

Conclusion

Seaweed extract has stood the test of time as an invaluable asset in agriculture. Its historical use by ancient civilizations, combined with modern scientific knowledge, reaffirms its effectiveness in promoting crop growth and environmental sustainability. The nutrient-rich composition of seaweed extract, coupled with its natural growth regulators, contributes to improved plant health, increased yields, and most importantly, its proven enhanced resistance to various stressors. As the world faces increasing challenges in food production and environmental conservation, the utilization of seaweed extract in agriculture presents a promising solution for sustainable farming practices, fostering a harmonious relationship between humanity and the natural world.