Flower pigment extracts boost veggie yields, skip wheat entirely
Crop Improvement
If you grow coriander, spinach, or peppers in your own beds, a spray made from flavonoid-rich plant extracts could mean a noticeably bigger harvest without reaching for synthetic fertilizer.
Researchers took compounds called flavonoids, the same plant pigments and chemicals that give fruits and flowers their color and help plants handle stress, extracted them from various exotic plants, and blended them into spray-on treatments. Tested across real farms growing everything from grapes to kale, these treatments helped many crops grow bigger yields and handle drought or low-fertilizer conditions better, with coriander jumping 66% and spinach 35%. Oddly, wheat and barley didn't respond at all, showing these treatments work better on some crops than others.
Key Findings
Field trials showed yield increases of 66% in coriander, 44% in grapes, 35% in spinach, and 5.2% in potatoes, with no effect observed in cereal crops like winter wheat and spring barley.
The biostimulants improved plant tolerance to drought stress and reduced nitrogen availability in greenhouse tests on rye grass, lettuce, and mustard.
RNA sequencing in Arabidopsis thaliana revealed the flavonoid extracts altered gene expression in flavonoid biosynthesis, starch/sucrose metabolism, and abiotic stress response pathways.
chevron_right Technical Summary
Plant extracts rich in flavonoids, when combined into biostimulant formulas and sprayed on crops, boosted yields significantly in some vegetables (like coriander and spinach) while helping plants cope better with drought and low nitrogen, though cereal crops saw no benefit.
Abstract Preview
Original paper
Flavonoid rich complex biostimulants and their role in increasing global crop yield
There is an urgent need to increase the global food supply for a rapidly growing population. Simultaneously there is a desire to reduce the use of agrochemicals, including fertilisers, to protect t...
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