Enhancing Forages with Nutrient Dense Sprays Final Report

The purpose of the Nutrient Dense Spray (NDS) trial was to evaluate the impact of nutrient dense foliar sprays on perennial forage yield, quality, and fatty acid concentrations. The nutrient spray program was developed by Advancing Eco-Agriculture (Middlefield, OH) and consisted of five foliar sprays specifically recommended for the farms participating in this study. The recommended foliar applications were evaluated over 3 growing seasons. In the third year of the study, a sixth foliar spray, ‘Sea Shield’ was added to the treatments. The recommended spray program included applications of Rejuvenate in the early spring and late fall, and a combination of PhotoMag, Phosphorus, Potassium, MicroPak, and Sea Shield applied in the spring and after each harvest of hay or graze (Table 1). This study was conducted based on farmer interest in enhancing nutrient density of forages through foliar sprays and was funded by the Lattner Family Foundation. Any reference to commercial products, trade names or brand names is for information only, and no endorsement or approval is intended

Effects of foliar fertilizers on grain quality by using SPAD chlorophyll meter

On-farm field experiments were conducted in 2013 around Hungary to evaluate the effect of natural foliar fertilizer applications on spelt yield and grain quality. Four different  foliar  applications  and  a  control  field  were  compared  to  monitor  the  efficiancy  of  the treatments

Supplemental macronutrients and microbial fermentation products improve the uptake and transport of foliar applied zinc in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) plants. Studies utilizing micro X-ray florescence.

Enhancing nutrient uptake and the subsequent elemental transport from the sites of application to sites of utilization is of great importance to the science and practical field application of foliar fertilizers. The aim of this study was to investigate the mobility of various foliar applied zinc (Zn) formulations in sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) and to evaluate the effects of the addition of an organic biostimulant on phloem loading and elemental mobility. This was achieved by application of foliar formulations to the blade of sunflower (H. annuus L.) and high-resolution elemental imaging with micro X-ray fluorescence (μ-XRF) to visualize Zn within the vascular system of the leaf petiole. Although no significant increase of total Zn in petioles was determined by inductively-coupled plasma mass-spectrometer, μ-XRF elemental imaging showed a clear enrichment of Zn in the vascular tissues within the sunflower petioles treated with foliar fertilizers containing Zn. The concentration of Zn in the vascular of sunflower petioles was increased when Zn was applied with other microelements with EDTA (commercial product Kick-Off) as compared with an equimolar concentration of ZnSO4 alone. The addition of macronutrients N, P, K (commercial product CleanStart) to the Kick-Off Zn fertilizer, further increased vascular system Zn concentrations while the addition of the microbially derived organic biostimulant "GroZyme" resulted in a remarkable enhancement of Zn concentrations in the petiole vascular system. The study provides direct visualized evidence for phloem transport of foliar applied Zn out of sites of application in plants by using μ-XRF technique, and suggests that the formulation of the foliar applied Zn and the addition of the organic biostimulant GroZyme increases the mobility of Zn following its absorption by the leaf of sunflower

Concentration and localization of zinc during seed development and germination in wheat

In a field experiment, the effect of foliar Zn applications on the concentration of Zn in seeds of a bread wheat cultivar (Triticum aestivum L. cv. Balatilla) was studied during different stages of seed development. In addition, a staining method using dithizone (DTZ: diphenyl thiocarbazone) was applied to (1) study the localization of Zn in seeds, (2) follow the remobilization of Zn during germination, and (3) develop a rapid visual Zn screening method for seed and flour samples. In all seed development stages, foliar Zn treatments were effective in increasing seed Zn concentration. The highest Zn concentration in the seeds was found in the first stage of seed development (around the early milk stage); after this, seed Zn concentration gradually decreased until maturity. When reacting with Zn, DTZ forms a redcolored complex. The DTZ staining of seed samples revealed that Zn is predominantly located in the embryo and aleurone parts of the seeds. After 36 h of germination, the coleoptile and roots that emerged from seeds showed very intensive red color formation and had Zn concentrations up to 200 mg kg1, indicating a substantial remobilization of Zn from seed pools into the developing roots (radicle) and coleoptile. The DTZ staining method seems to be useful in ranking flour samples for their Zn concentrations. There was a close relationship between the seed Zn concentrations and spectral absorbance of the methanol extracts of the flour samples stained with DTZ. The results suggest that (1) accumulation of Zn in seeds is particularly high during early seed development, (2) Zn is concentrated in the embryo and aleurone parts, and (3) the DTZ staining method can be used as a rapid, semiquantitative method to estimate Zn concentrations of flour and seed samples and to screen genotypes for their Zn concentrations in seeds

Enhancing Forages with Nutrient Dense Sprays 2012 Trials

The nutrient dense study was initiated at two locations in Vermont to test the efficacy of amending forages with foliar sprays. The nutrient spray program was developed by Advancing Eco-Agriculture and consisted of five foliar sprays for the Vermont farms in this study. The recommended spray program included applications of Rejuvenate in the early spring and late fall, and a combination of PhotoMag, Phosphorus, Potassium and MicroPak applied in the spring and after each cut of hay or graze (Table 1). This study was conducted based on farmer interest in enhancing nutrient density of forages through foliar sprays and was funded by the Lattner Foundation. Any reference to commercial products, trade names or brand names is for information only, and no endorsement or approval is intended

Mycosphaerella foliar diseases of bananas: towards an integrated protection

Mycosphaerella foliar diseases, Black Leaf Streak and Sigatoka diseases caused respectively by Mycosphaerella fijiensis and M. musicola, are by far the main parasitic constraints for export bananas. They result in substantial necrosis of the foliage and consequently yield loss, but - most importantly - in immature ripening that renders bananas unfit for export. In the absence of commercial resistant varieties, banana exports can only be achieved through intensive chemical control. In most countries, fungicides are applied systematically following a fixed-schedule treatment programme (40-60 applications/year) to protect the young leaves against infection. In some places, forecasting systems are used to schedule treatments in function of the stage of evolution of the disease (5-14 treatments/year). In all countries chemical control has to face increasing difficulties in terms of efficacy, cost and environmental impact. This situation results mainly of two major events: (i) the development of fungicide resistance to systemic fungicides that lead to a systematic use of protectants and (ii) the evolution of the legislation which becomes increasingly restrictive. New alternatives that must be associated with basic prophylactic measures such as the mechanical ablation of lesioned leaves are needed for a sustainable control of these diseases. They are presented as (1) short-term solutions: implement the forecasting strategy where it is feasible or introduce fungicides with low negative environmental effect where this forecasting strategy is impeached by fungicide resistance; (2) mid-to-long-term solution: develop and introduce resistant cultivars in the cropping system. (Résumé d'auteur

Effects of plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) on yield, growth and nutrient contents of organically grown strawberry

The effects of plant growth promoting bacteria (PGPB) on the fruit yield, growth and nutrient element content of strawberry cv. Fern were investigated under organic growing conditions between 2006 and 2008. The experimental plot was a completely randomized design with 3 replicates. Three PGPB strains (Pseudomonas BA-8, Bacillus OSU-142 and Bacillus M-3) were used alone or in combination as biofertilizer agent in the experiment. Data through 3 years showed that the use of PGPB significantly increased fruit yield, plant growth and leaf P and Zn contents. Root inoculation of M3 and floral and foliar spraying of OSU-142 and BA-8 bacteria stimulated plant growth resulting in significant yield increases. M3 + BA-8, BA-8 + OSU-142, M3, M3 + OSU-142 and BA-8 applications increased cumulative yield by 33.2%, 18.4%, 18.2%, 15.3% and 10.5%, respectively. Number of fruits per plant significantly increased by the applications of M3 + BA-8 (91.73) and M3 (81.58) compared with the control (68.66). In addition, P and Zn contents of strawberry leaves with bacterial inoculation significantly increased under organic growing conditions. Available P contents in soil were increased from 0.35 kg P2O5/da at the beginning of the study to 2.00, 1.97 and 1.82 kg P2O5/da by M3 + OSU-142, M3 + BA-8 and M3 + BA-8 + OSU-142 applications, respectively. Overall, the results of this study suggest that root inoculation of Bacillus M3 alone or in combination with spraying Bacillus OSU-142 or Pseudomonas BA-8 have the potential to increase the yield, growth and nutrition content of strawberry plant under organic growing conditions