Seaweed extracts’ multifactorial action: influence on physiological and biochemical status of Solanaceae plants

Abstract

Seaweeds are one of the important marine bioresources which are nowadays termed as eco-friendly stimulators of crop growth, stress tolerance, and yielding. In this review, we give an update of the current state of our understanding of the seaweed extracts (SWE) effects on the physiological alterations they induce in Solanaceae vegetables. SWE may provide a powerful and environmentally friendly approach to nutrient management. A pool of common bioactive molecules of SWE provides enhancement of the antioxidant machinery of treated plants providing balanced development, earlier flowering, and enhanced fruiting. The basic mechanisms of SWE action seem to be unspecific for tomato, pepper, and eggplant. They include accelerating growth, nutrient uptake, and photosynthesis performance, which can induce plant tolerance to adverse environmental conditions, improve flowering, fruit setting, and yield, and enhance nutritional quality of the crops. The mechanism of SWE action is complex because of multielement composition and cross-action between constituents.

Early and Total Yield Enhancement of the Globe Artichoke Using an Ecofriendly Seaweed Extract-Based Biostimulant and PK Fertilizer

“…In general, seaweed extracts enhance plant growth and quality and improve the resistance to climatic changes because they are rich in fatty acids, minerals and polysaccharides [54]. The chemical and biochemical constituents of any seaweed extract act as biostimulants that work synergistically [55,56]. There was a good agreement with the results of previous studies that indicated the beneficial effects of diluted seaweed extracts on plants such as artichoke [15,42].…”

Recent Advances in the Molecular Effects of Biostimulants in Plants: An Overview

“…Furthermore, the application of SWE has also been associated with an increase in plant tolerance to biotic and abiotic stresses [100][101][102]. In recent years, there has been a growing interest in SWE amongst the scientific community and the agricultural industry, as several studies indicate a positive influence of SWE in crop production in both normal and stress conditions [103][104][105]. However, it has been shown that the efficacy of seaweed extracts may depend on whether or not a stress is present or absent, the type of stress involved, the type of extract and it biochemical characteristics [101].…”

Natural Compounds as Elicitors of Plant Resistance Against Diseases and New Biocontrol Strategies

“…Garlic juice used in vitro limits the growth of bacteria (genus Agrobacterium, Erwinia, Pseudomonas, Xanthomonas) and fungi (Alternaria alternata, Fusarium moniliforme, Cercospora arachidicola, Colletotrichum coccodes, Botrytis cinerea, Rhizoctonia solani) [6,26,27]. Many authors have reported high efficiency of allicin under field conditions [28][29][30]. Spraying sweet pepper plants several times with a solution of garlic pulp extract (Bioczos Liquid preparation) improved plants' health and was more effective than azoxystrobin treatment (Amistar 250 SC fungicide) [26].…”