Biostimulants are substances highly valued by modern wholesale hemp farmers that can be used with great success to increase production and improve the quality of cannabis crops. These are not the classic fertilizing agents or fertilizers but different growth supports. Let’s find out together how they work and why, if used correctly, they are really good for our seedlings.
As anticipated, biostimulants are an addition that supports the growth of plants in a sustainable way, they are mixes of substances and microorganisms capable of improving growth during the entire life cycle of plants, from the germination phase (or from transplanting) until the time of collection. Why should they be different from the usual organic fertilizers? These are not nutrients but elements chemically capable of improving the absorption of nutrients by plants and reducing the onset of stress responses during the life cycle of the plant.
wholesale hemp: Definition of biostimulants
The term “biostimulant” was used for the first time in ’97 by some scholars of the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University, Zhang and Schmidt, to indicate certain biological substances with the ability to promote plant growth, these were humic acids and extracts of seaweed.
In 2007, another renowned scholar named Kauffman underlined the difference with fertilizers and following his very enthusiastic “dusting off” of these products, the substances were taken more seriously in the agricultural field and classified in different types of biostimulants: humic acids, containing hormones and amino acid compounds.
Patrick Du Jardin, in 2012 gave the first official definition: “substances and materials with the exception of nutrients and pesticides, which when applied to the plant, seeds or growth substrate in specific formulations, have the ability to modify the physiological processes of plants by improving growth, development and/or response to stress”.
A first European classification of biostimulants was also created:
– humic substances
– Algae extracts
– complex organic materials
– Beneficial chemical elements
– Inorganic salts including phosphites
– Chitin and chitosan derivatives
– Antiperspirants
– Amino acids and other nitrogenous compounds
wholesale hemp: What do the biostimulants extracted from Algae contain?
The best known natural biostimulants are certainly the algae extracts, specifically they are usually derivatives of the Ascophyllum nodosum, Ecklonia maxima, Laminaria digitata varieties. Each variety produces substances with a different effect and the growth phase in which the extraction takes place and the extraction/processing methods also have an effect on the result.
The chemical substances that make up most of the biostimulant solutions are extracted from the starting algae matrix, the most used method involves cold extraction in high pressure water, a technique that allows to prevent chemical alterations of the bioactive molecules.
wholesale hemp: Benefits of algae-based biostimulants
It has been shown by many studies that the use of these seaweed extracts in small quantities improves the germination speed, growth, inflorescence production and the quality of the final product. With this addition, the plant also appears more resistant to environmental stress, as well as improving the absorption of macro and micronutrients in cannabis plants.
wholesale hemp: Where do these biostimulating effects come from?
Especially from the presence of phytohormones (such as auxins, cytokinins, abscisic acid), polysaccharides, polyphenols and other organic molecules. The presence of polysaccharides such as laminarin, alginates and fucoidans further improves tolerance to environmental stresses such as sudden changes in temperature and humidity.
As we have anticipated, not all biostimulants are the same, the use of different extracts during the various stages of growth will allow you to obtain the best biological responses from your cannabis up to the collection of the best inflorescences that your cannabis plant can produce.