A Guide To The Different Types Of Biostimulants

With the increased requirement for food supply, biostimulants have become one of the most commonly used stimulants in the agriculture industry.

With their recent popularity, traditional stimulants such as fertilizers and pesticides can be easily replaced due to the biostimulant’s unique method of influencing growth and development in more than one way.

Compared to traditional fertilizers, biostimulants offer much more potential growth by improving yields and crop quality.

But Is Replacing a Traditional Fertilizer Necessary? Aren’t They Suitable for Crop and Yield?

Fertilizers seem to improve crop production and yield as they contain essential ingredients such as Nitrogen, potassium, and phosphorus, which are essentially suitable for plants.

Still, it has many disadvantages; excessive use of fertilizers can hamper soil fertility by increasing salinity and polluting the groundwater table.

Traditional fertilizers are categorized into two categories: Organic and Inorganic Fertilizers.

1. Inorganic fertilizers: This type of fertilizer contains chemicals that can help boost the development of crops. Below are a few examples of the kinds of Inorganic fertilizers:

• Nitrogen Fertilizers: Nitrogen-based fertilizer’s key ingredient is Nitrogen, which helps improve the quality and the quality of the crops. It helps maintain a balance in the process of photosynthesis.
• Phosphorus Fertilizers: Phosphorus-based fertilizer contains phosphorus. Phosphorus plays a vital role in cell growth and proliferation and is beneficial for the development of roots of plants.

2. Organic Fertilizers:

Organic fertilizers are natural fertilizers obtained from plants and animals that enrich the soil with enhanced organic carbon and nitrogen content, which help promote the reproduction of microorganisms.

So, What Are the Disadvantages of Chemical Fertilizers and Organic Fertilizers?

Even though the critical ingredients in fertilizers are highly beneficial for crops and yield, they can be equally harmful to the health of the plants and people to consume.

They can be pretty expensive and cause immense damage to the plants if they’re excessively used. If the fertilizers reach river water, too many plants can grow on the water’s surface and create an issue for marine life.

The long-term use of fertilizers can also affect the pH levels of the soil and reduce microbial activity, resulting in damaged crops.

So, How Are Some of the Ingredients in Biostimulants Beneficial for Plant Growth?

Some of the ingredients in biostimulants are seaweed extracts, amino acids, fulvic acid, and humic acids.

1. Seaweed extracts: Biostimulants that consist of seaweed extracts are used for horticultural crops to promote plant growth and build tolerance against abiotic stresses. Seaweed extracts come in three different colours, which are green, brown, and red. The brown seaweed extracts include chemicals such as complex polysaccharides, mineral nutrients, fatty acids, vitamins, and phytohormones.
2. Amino Acids: Biostimulants with Amino acids help stimulate chlorophyll concentration so the plants can absorb higher levels of photosynthesis.
3. Fulvic and humic acids: Biostimulants with ingredients such as Fulvic and humic acids improve nutrient uptake and tolerance to abiotic stresses by stimulating the roots.
4. Complex Biostimulants: The third type of biostimulants combines all the sources that positively impact germination, root development, and chlorophyll production. The most recent practice going on in the agricultural industry is the use of Microbial Biostimulants, which are unknown to many farmers.

These stimulants help introduce non-pathogenic bacteria, mycorrhizal fungi, and other soil microorganisms.

Biostimulants are made using natural/synthetic substances; they can be applied to crops/plants.

They stimulate the natural process of the plant by enhancing its natural nutrient uptake and tolerance to abiotic stresses, which improves the quality of the crop.

There are many Microbial biostimulant products in the current market, but one of the best is Organica’s MagicGro range of products.

They not only help condition the soil but also avoid any possible pest invasion.

The unique development using microbial and natural ingredients also promotes farmers to practise sustainable farming and protects our natural resources.