Biostimulants, nutrition, snake oil... many people have many different names for products that are intended to feed plants and reduce plant stress.
Some people are sceptical of their use, while others have tried and tested them and have decided that some of these products suit their systems and some don’t. Many have been trialled, while many have not.
As we face into a future where chemicals are no longer seen as the solution by legislators, and more pesticides are being banned, we need to look at alternatives and broaden our outlook on disease control.
Healthy plants
The first thing to say is we need healthy plants, so plants need to be fed. They need nutrition. Different elements have different jobs to do, whether it be magnesium to create chlorophyl or potassium for straw strength.
Unhealthy plants are more susceptible to disease, just as humans are. If you aren’t eating a balanced diet or you have left fruit and vegetables out of your diet, your immune system won’t be as strong and you might be more likely to catch a cold for example.
In Ireland, we don’t get enough vitamin D and most of us are supposed to be taking vitamin D supplements to make up for the deficiency. A supplement of vitamin C and D can boost our immune systems.
This is why then it makes sense to feed a manganese deficient crop with manganese. It may also be why a crop will benefit from magnesium at the head spray. It helps the plant to function and increase grain yield.
Deficiencies/stunted growth
Often when we hear about disease on plants, the research and the advice is to apply this fungicide at that timing, but there is no mention of checking your plant for deficiencies or stunted growth.
Maybe in the past, high rates of strong fungicides helped to mask some deficiencies, but this is no longer an option. Fungicides need to be used efficiently and we need to prepare for a time when we may no longer have them as readily available.
Ramularia is a disease we hear a lot about. It can be caused by stress in a plant which could be a hot tank mix or a nutrient deficiency that has not been addressed.
We hear about the ideal timing of a fungicide for ramularia control being when the awns are out, but this matters little if your plant is stressed from dry weather or lack of nutrition. Yet independent research into feeding a plant to prevent ramularia is lacking.
Nutrition is fairly self-explanatory. You might know that a field is lacking in a nutrient and you can address this early. You test your soil and you feed the deficiencies. If you see an issue in the field, you see is there anything you have missed, is soil pH correct? If you can’t find the answer you do a leaf analysis and see if the plant is deficient in a nutrient it needs.
Biostimulants becoming more popular with agronomists and farmers
Seaweed being processed in Donegal.
Bio-stimulants can help to reduce stress in a plant and some claim they help with fungicide uptake.
They are not seen as a solution that will replace fungicides, but they can help in the fight against disease when used in combination with fungicides and trials have shown yield increases where seaweed is applied to crops and they can help to reduce plant stress.
A number of these bio-stimulants have now become standard in their use. For example, Delfin is applied with winter herbicides to reduce stress.
Farmers will be familiar with how a herbicide can knock back some winter cereals and are happy to apply the two together to reduce stress.
Seaweed
Seaweed is probably the most popular bio-stimulant being used across the country. It’s nothing new in some parts of the country. Seaweed has been used as a fertiliser by farmers for as long as can be remembered.
Much of the liquid seaweed used now is Irish-grown, being produced and packaged in Ireland and is certified organic.
Not only this, but research shows it is giving farmers a return on investment. Farmers and agronomists across the country are applying it at times of stress on a plant, like drought. It can help with better fungicide uptake and some agronomists are applying seaweeds and cut back a little bit on the fungicide rate where possible. This is looking at a future where fungicide use is reduced.
The bottom line is if a product is costing €2/ac to apply and it is resulting in an increase in profit of €6/ac, then it is giving you a return on investment.
Research
One thing that is important here is research. We have little independent research in Ireland on feeding plants. We have little independent research on bio-stimulants, but there is research out there.
Some of the companies who sell these products are carrying out research and farmers should ask to see it when deciding whether to purchase a product.
They should then tot up the cost of the product and the increase in yield or reduction in fungicide use and see if it has delivered a return on investment.
However, some of these products come onto the market with no research and this should not be the case.
A glasshouse trial for a few weeks in a lab is not good enough when investing your money in a product. Neither is a trial carried out on wheat in Australia where plants are constantly under heat stress and dry conditions.
If someone wants to sell a product in Ireland, it needs to be tested here and we shouldn’t be applying it if it’s not.
Make up your own mind
We also need to give people credit in the industry. Farmers are smart people. They’ll trial products and if they don’t suit their system or bring a benefit to a crop, then they won’t use them again.
Agronomists are smart people. They know that they won’t cod a farmer and if they sell them products that don’t work they won’t sell as much to that farmer the next time.
Agronomists also care about producing good crops and the more a famer makes from a crop, the easier their job is, as the farmer has more money in their pocket and bills are paid on time.
We can’t just make broad statements that bio-stimulants or other innovations that might come on the market don’t work.
Anyone who does might well eat their hat in a few years’ time when they could be one of the few tools in the box to control disease or when the EU follows through on the idea of applying milk and beer to crops to control disease.
Donegal Seaweed ready to be processed to make a bio-stimulant.
Bio-stimulants are another helping hand to a plant. The EU defines bio-stimulants as fertilising products used to stimulate plant nutrition processes to improve the plants characteristics. They help to improve nutrient use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress and help to access nutrients in the soil.
Biostimulants, nutrition, snake oil... many people have many different names for products that are intended to feed plants and reduce plant stress.
Some people are sceptical of their use, while others have tried and tested them and have decided that some of these products suit their systems and some don’t. Many have been trialled, while many have not.
As we face into a future where chemicals are no longer seen as the solution by legislators, and more pesticides are being banned, we need to look at alternatives and broaden our outlook on disease control.
Healthy plants
The first thing to say is we need healthy plants, so plants need to be fed. They need nutrition. Different elements have different jobs to do, whether it be magnesium to create chlorophyl or potassium for straw strength.
Unhealthy plants are more susceptible to disease, just as humans are. If you aren’t eating a balanced diet or you have left fruit and vegetables out of your diet, your immune system won’t be as strong and you might be more likely to catch a cold for example.
In Ireland, we don’t get enough vitamin D and most of us are supposed to be taking vitamin D supplements to make up for the deficiency. A supplement of vitamin C and D can boost our immune systems.
This is why then it makes sense to feed a manganese deficient crop with manganese. It may also be why a crop will benefit from magnesium at the head spray. It helps the plant to function and increase grain yield.
Deficiencies/stunted growth
Often when we hear about disease on plants, the research and the advice is to apply this fungicide at that timing, but there is no mention of checking your plant for deficiencies or stunted growth.
Maybe in the past, high rates of strong fungicides helped to mask some deficiencies, but this is no longer an option. Fungicides need to be used efficiently and we need to prepare for a time when we may no longer have them as readily available.
Ramularia is a disease we hear a lot about. It can be caused by stress in a plant which could be a hot tank mix or a nutrient deficiency that has not been addressed.
We hear about the ideal timing of a fungicide for ramularia control being when the awns are out, but this matters little if your plant is stressed from dry weather or lack of nutrition. Yet independent research into feeding a plant to prevent ramularia is lacking.
Nutrition is fairly self-explanatory. You might know that a field is lacking in a nutrient and you can address this early. You test your soil and you feed the deficiencies. If you see an issue in the field, you see is there anything you have missed, is soil pH correct? If you can’t find the answer you do a leaf analysis and see if the plant is deficient in a nutrient it needs.
Biostimulants becoming more popular with agronomists and farmers
Seaweed being processed in Donegal.
Bio-stimulants can help to reduce stress in a plant and some claim they help with fungicide uptake.
They are not seen as a solution that will replace fungicides, but they can help in the fight against disease when used in combination with fungicides and trials have shown yield increases where seaweed is applied to crops and they can help to reduce plant stress.
A number of these bio-stimulants have now become standard in their use. For example, Delfin is applied with winter herbicides to reduce stress.
Farmers will be familiar with how a herbicide can knock back some winter cereals and are happy to apply the two together to reduce stress.
Seaweed
Seaweed is probably the most popular bio-stimulant being used across the country. It’s nothing new in some parts of the country. Seaweed has been used as a fertiliser by farmers for as long as can be remembered.
Much of the liquid seaweed used now is Irish-grown, being produced and packaged in Ireland and is certified organic.
Not only this, but research shows it is giving farmers a return on investment. Farmers and agronomists across the country are applying it at times of stress on a plant, like drought. It can help with better fungicide uptake and some agronomists are applying seaweeds and cut back a little bit on the fungicide rate where possible. This is looking at a future where fungicide use is reduced.
The bottom line is if a product is costing €2/ac to apply and it is resulting in an increase in profit of €6/ac, then it is giving you a return on investment.
Research
One thing that is important here is research. We have little independent research in Ireland on feeding plants. We have little independent research on bio-stimulants, but there is research out there.
Some of the companies who sell these products are carrying out research and farmers should ask to see it when deciding whether to purchase a product.
They should then tot up the cost of the product and the increase in yield or reduction in fungicide use and see if it has delivered a return on investment.
However, some of these products come onto the market with no research and this should not be the case.
A glasshouse trial for a few weeks in a lab is not good enough when investing your money in a product. Neither is a trial carried out on wheat in Australia where plants are constantly under heat stress and dry conditions.
If someone wants to sell a product in Ireland, it needs to be tested here and we shouldn’t be applying it if it’s not.
Make up your own mind
We also need to give people credit in the industry. Farmers are smart people. They’ll trial products and if they don’t suit their system or bring a benefit to a crop, then they won’t use them again.
Agronomists are smart people. They know that they won’t cod a farmer and if they sell them products that don’t work they won’t sell as much to that farmer the next time.
Agronomists also care about producing good crops and the more a famer makes from a crop, the easier their job is, as the farmer has more money in their pocket and bills are paid on time.
We can’t just make broad statements that bio-stimulants or other innovations that might come on the market don’t work.
Anyone who does might well eat their hat in a few years’ time when they could be one of the few tools in the box to control disease or when the EU follows through on the idea of applying milk and beer to crops to control disease.
Donegal Seaweed ready to be processed to make a bio-stimulant.
Bio-stimulants are another helping hand to a plant. The EU defines bio-stimulants as fertilising products used to stimulate plant nutrition processes to improve the plants characteristics. They help to improve nutrient use efficiency, tolerance to abiotic stress and help to access nutrients in the soil.
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