Growing Better Tomatoes – Part 2

Successful trials of tomato seedlings using Humintech biostimulants

Modern agricultural problems

The rapid change in ecology, precipitation and temperature patterns increases farmers’ concerns and forces them to look for other solutions.

On the other hand, the problems of recent years, COVID-19 and the Ukrainian war, also greatly affect the costs of agricultural production through fertilizers and energy. Researchers around the world are conducting research to find and develop effective solutions to reduce financial risks.

Humic substances play an important role in fertilizer efficiency, water retention capacity and reducing nitrate leaching into groundwater. In addition, they have the ability to reduce plant stress while enhancing CO2 sequestration in the soil.

Humintech is one of the world’s leading companies in the production and sale of biostimulants based on German leonardite (oxidized brown coal). We continuously invest in research and development, competing with ourselves to expand the use of our technologies for the benefit of farmers and the environment.

Competing with yourself

Tomatoes are grown in open ground and greenhouses.
To increase the yield and its early maturity, most producers grow tomatoes through seedlings (young plants). The quality of seedlings is especially important for the further growth and development of plants. Its quality can be influenced by several factors, one of which is the development of the root system, which determines the survival of the plant after transplantation.

Humintech decided to once again evaluate the effectiveness of its products in the production of tomato seedlings. The products used: LIQHUMUS® – humic acid extraction in liquid form, BioHealth® TH BS WSG – a combination of algae, humic acid, bacteria and fungi, Microsense® Root – a combination of amino acids, humic acids and bacteria.

Since the market demand for cherry tomatoes is growing, we used the Trixie tomato variety, G659, of German selection.

The aim of the experiment was to study the effect of different Humintech products on the development of tomato seedling growth, as well as fine-tuning the efficiency of fertilizer use, plant growth performance, disease resistance and stress resistance.

Materials and Methods

Tomato seeds were sown in QP 104 pot trays, in Klasmann substrate for vegetable seedling production, at the stage of 2 true leaves, seedlings were planted in 8x8x8.5 cm pots and placed in a growth medium with a day temperature of 22-26°C and a night temperature of 14-18°C. Plant care during vegetative growth was similar to conventional seedling production.

To better understand the plant behavior when using the tested Humintech products, we proposed the following application:

Soil application;

• LIQHUMUS® Liquid 18 – 2 l/ha
• BioHealth® TH BS WSG – 1 kg/ha

The application rates were calculated per plant per square meter.

Two foliar applications of Microsense Root 0.2% and Microsense Maxi 0.2% were used to determine the efficiency of plant growth and development. The total spray volume was calculated at 500 l/ha.

Results and conclusions

The observations clearly show that Humintech foliar, soil or combined applications have a stimulating effect on plant growth and development from the initial stages. The observed root formation, stronger leaves and fresh shoot weight indicate higher efficiency of fertilizer use and promise increased yields.

Ready to continue: Humintech will continue to research and develop best practices to support our customers by offering competitive agricultural products.

Blog header image by Alexander Malofeev on Unsplash.

Source: Humintech. Original article: view here.