Vigorseed P and Microtech Power: two allies for cereal growers during critical years

In cereal farming, both the yields and the qualitative parameters of the grain collected can be strongly influenced by the characteristics of the soil and the meteorological trend of the year. Fertilization is one of the most important cultivation techniques to ensure that the plant is in the best conditions to face difficult years from a thermo-pluviometric aspect, and not only because it guarantees the crop adequate nutrition.

Fertilization can do much more.

On the one hand, the application during the sowing of products inoculated with useful microorganisms, in particular mycorrhizal fungi and PGPR bacteria, can favour the faster and more “harmonious” development of the root system, even when facing not entirely favourable environmental conditions, by improving the functional efficiency of the roots and, ultimately, the hydration and nutritional balance of the plant.

On the other hand, the distribution during the growth cycle via leaves or roots of liquid fertilizers with a biostimulating action, and once again inoculated with useful microorganisms, can positively influence not only the nutritional status but also the health of the plant.

By combining these two types of products into a single fertilization strategy, we can obtain results in line with expectations even during critical years.

The test we are referring to in this article, conducted on common wheat, proves it.

Vigorseed P is an inoculum of mycorrhizal fungi in powder format, designed to stimulate seed germination, rooting and the growth of seedlings. It favours the development in the soil of mycorrhizae of the genus Glomus and rhizosphere bacteria with a PGPR effect, which revitalize the soil and generate a very favourable environment for root development, while promoting greater crop resistance to abiotic stress. Suitable for fertilizing the seeds of cereals and horticultural crops, Vigorseed P is applied by mixing it to the seed before sowing, or by using a hopper, alternating layers of product and seeds.

Microtech Power is a liquid organic fertilizer developed for use during the growth cycle of herbaceous and tree crops. Obtained from plant materials and through an exclusive enzymatic hydrolysis process, it provides nitrogen, organic carbon, enzymes, sugars, levogiro-amino acids, peptones, mycorrhizae and rhizospheric bacteria useful to plants (PGPR, nitrogen-fixators etc…). The microbial consortia inoculated in Microtech Power (Trichoderma harzianum, Trichoderma viride, Azospirillum, Azotobacter, Pseudomonas and other microorganisms), biostimulate the crop and improve the absorption of the nutritional elements provided or already found in the soil but not used, while simultaneously creating a protective barrier against pathogens around the roots.

Vigorseed P and Microtech Power are both allowed to be used in organic farming.

In collaboration with a testing centre in the province of Ravenna, during the 2021-2022 season, a fertilization test was conducted on autumn-summer common wheat cv Rebelde grown using organic farming standards at the Commercial Farm Bonifica Lamone (San Romualdo, RA), on land with a predominantly sandy soil (67% sand).

The parcels were sown on 20/10/2021, the harvest was conducted on 24/06/2022.

From the sowing to the beginning of the preparation, despite the scarcity of rain, the approximate 120 mm that fell between the end of October and the beginning of January allowed excellent germination and satisfied fully the water requirement of the crop. From January to March the rainfall was very poor, with just 40 mm falling in the quarter. This, together with the sandy soil, adversely affected the vegetative development of the crop. From mid-April to the harvest, just over 90 mm of rainfall was recorded, essential for the solubilization of granular fertilizers distributed in the soil and for the support of the crop during the tillering and flowering  phase, but not sufficient to guarantee high yields.

Temperatures remained mild from the sowing until late November; it was only on the cusp of December that the temperature drop was significant. Starting from the month of March the days were mild (with temperatures >20°C) and May was very hot, often with peaks above 30°C. This, together with the lack of rainfall, has certainly reduced the final production potential. Since mid-June, temperatures have risen further, which has led to an earlier ripening and drying by almost a week compared to the average of the previous 4-5 years.

The substantially dry year has disadvantaged the appearance of fungal diseases, while parasites have been contained with insecticidal treatments during the flowering.

Six different biological fertilization theses have been compared, based only on background fertilization and on the combination of this with pre-sowing and growth cycle fertilization.

1. Untreated test sample
2. Agriorganico 442 during pre-sowing at a dose of 1,500 kg/ha (equivalent to 60 kg/ha of N)
3. Agriorganic 442 during pre-sowing at a dose of 1,000 kg/ha + Agriorganic 7% at a dose of 430 kg/ha at mid-sprouting (equivalent to 70 kg/ha total of N)
4. Vigorseed P restricted during sowing at a dose of 0.5 kg/ha + Agriorganic 442 during pre-sowing at a dose of 1,000 kg/ha + Agriorganic 7% at a dose of 430 kg/ha at mid-sprouting + Microtech Power at a dose of 3 L/Ha by foliar route, in two different phenological phases: the beginning of tillering and boot (equivalent to 70 kg/ha total of N)
5. Agriorganic 572 during pre-sowing at a dose of 500 kg/ha + Agriorganic 7% at a dose of 642 kg/ha at mid-sprouting (equivalent to 70 kg/ha total of N)
6. Vigorseed P restricted during sowing at a dose of 0.5 kg/ha + Agriorganic 442 in pre-sowing at a dose of 1,000 kg/ha + Agriorganic 7% at a dose of 430 kg/ha at mid-sprouting (equivalent to 70 kg/ha total of N)

Below is the tests diagram:

In addition to surveys for potential phytotoxicity after the foliar treatments  (always found to be zero), the following parameters were evaluated at the harvest:

• production (t/ha, relative to 13% humidity)
• humidity (%)
• protein (% SS)
• gluten (at 13% humidity)
• specific weight (kg/ha, using an Infratec ^TM NOVA reader)
• protein yield (t/ha), multiplying protein content (% on dry matter) by production (dry matter).

During a difficult year for common wheat, characterized by strong water stress associated with high temperatures, the quality parameters achieved in the various theses were good, but yields remained fairly low, between a minimum of 6.38 and 7.03 T/ha.

The highest unit yield was recorded in Thesis 4, which involved the “complete treatment”, with the applications of Vigorseed P during sowing and Microtech Power during the growth cycle, associated with the fractionation of NP fertilizer during the pre-sowing and sprouting. Not only that, the product collected in this Thesis has shown to have extremely interesting characteristics: a protein yield equal to over 0.90 t/ha SS and a  percentage of gluten equal to 35%.

Microbial-based products generated a production increase of 710 kg/ha compared to the theses with the same fertilizer units but without useful microorganisms being used, equal to 10.20% of production. This shows that useful microorganisms act as an invisible positive force on the quantity and quality of agricultural production and represent an opportunity for more sustainable agriculture.

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