Biostimulants for Resilient Agriculture: A Preliminary Assessment in Italy

Autor: Rita Leogrande, Daniel El Chami, Giulio Fumarola, Michele Di Carolo, Giuseppe Piegari, Mario Elefante, Donato Perrelli, Crescenza Dongiovanni
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: Sustainability; Volume 14; Issue 11; Pages: 6816
ISSN: 2071-1050
DOI: 10.3390/su14116816
Popis: In agriculture, plant biostimulants have become necessary to meet the United Nations sustainable development goals (UN-SDGs) and advance the European Green Deal. In particular, seaweed-based biostimulants have received a greater acceptance for their several benefits in crop growth and yield. In this study, we evaluated the effects of foliar applications of a vegetable- and brown-algae-based extract (Ascophyllum nodosum (L.) Le Jol. on grapes (Vitis vinifera L. cv. Montepulciano) and olives (Olea europaea L. cv. Coratina) and its agronomic performance in two field experiments in the Apulia region, which is known for its modern agricultural sector. The results highlight that the crop responses differ in grape and olive orchards. The biostimulant application determined significant increases in bunch development (+9.5%) and bunch weight (+10%) compared to the untreated control. In the olive orchard, the yield was not significantly influenced by biostimulant application, whereas we observed quality improvement in the olive oil of the treated plants compared to the control. To better understand the mechanisms behind this difference, the research concludes by suggesting that further research pursues in-depth studies and high scientific and technical proficiency to determine and optimise the rates and timing of applications.
Databáze: OpenAIRE